Within Inches
by kp4377
Summary: "She couldn't hold back a scream as she saw the protrusion of the assailants thin shaft that had effortlessly forced its way through Emily's Kevlar and pierced her chest."
1. Chapter 1

_This scene popped in my head so I'd thought I'd attempt to tell it. The story itself probably won't be more than three or four more chapters._

_My one and only disclaimer is I do not own Criminal Minds or the characters **as sad as that is**_

_Oh read the chapter carefully not all is as it seems, and will be explained in the next chapter._

_Happy reading and I'd love to hear your thoughts!_

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><p><em>"Trust takes time to build, seconds to lose and twice as long to regain as it did to build in the first place."~unknown<em>

Within Inches

The two Agents stepped in unison through the thick brush and searched through the darkness. The air that surrounded them held an eerie chill that became colder the deeper they traveled. They were trailed by distant flashes of lights that danced through the blackness around them. The only sound besides their boots breaking twigs and underbrush was the occasional voice in the earwig asking or giving a report. They held their guns tightly in front of them and their flashlights created their only line of vision. A casual glance or gesture was their communication but was minimal as they read each other perfectly through their movements.

When a clearing appeared they halted their progress and what the Agents were searching for came into focus right in front of them. She heard Emily's voice report that they found her, and JJ continued to move forward but was stopped when an arm came across her chest. She felt confused to what they needed to wait for and looked over for an answer, but was not given one. She saw concern in Emily's eyes and her breathing had increased, but other than that there were no words.

The lights continued to flicker in the distance but began to merge and move closer to their location. JJ turned her head back to their purpose. Carol Smith, the missing woman they had spent three days searching for was on the verge of collapse. She was bound and gaged and she tried to acknowledge her rescue but fear of any movement kept her frozen. A noose lay loosely around her neck and the rope was tied to a thick branch above her. She was perched on a makeshift wooden box that was shaking and threatened to tip with the slightest movement. One wrong move or start from her and she would hang. JJ knew Emily was being cautious but felt an overwhelming need to get to this helpless woman. Carol's eyes pleaded with them to save her, and JJ felt her heart drop when their eyes connected and she saw the fear that consumed her.

She took another look to Emily and felt a twang of anger begin to build at her hesitation. Her eyes shot back when she saw Carol move and lose her balance on the box and it began to shift. They had worked so hard to find and save her JJ couldn't wait for an okay and moved to put an end to the madness.

"Wait it could be a trap!"

Emily's words rung in her ears but it was too late. She felt her leg get tangled and when her sudden momentum was halted her body fell forward in a crash. She couldn't comprehend what felt like an object rushing past her as her head connected violently with a sharp rock that protruded from the ground.

The first sensation that was clear was the smell of the dirt and pine needles that surrounded her face. JJ tried to push herself up but failed at first as she felt her head swim from the action. She slowly got to her knees and when she brought her hand up to control the spinning she felt the warm blood that ran out of the gash on her forehead. All she could do was squeeze her eyes shut to gain some composure and control of herself. When she looked up again and her eyes began to focus she saw Carol kicking and bucking her body as the tight rope fought to steal her life.

JJ's panic was back and she stood to get to her and try and save her. The trees and ground tilted as she stumbled forward but she desperately fought against it. She yelled for Emily to help her and couldn't understand why she had not gotten to Carol yet. Emily hadn't been tripped or fighting a concussion, the anger to the lack of action on her partners part continued to bubble up. She planned to let her know how she felt once this woman was safe. When JJ got to her she found her focus enough to get the box up and loosen the noose. As the woman gasped for air JJ looked from her to where Emily had been standing.

When there was no one in the darkness she frantically scanned her surroundings. She found herself confused to where the brunette could have gone, but felt her heart stop and the breath leave her body when the scene in front of her was realized. She prayed the image was blurred from the darkness and her head injury but the light that lay on the ground told the complete story.

JJ's eyes followed passed the small cone of light and felt herself stiffen when she saw that Emily was not moving. She fought herself to really comprehend what was going on but the panic that filtered through her overtook any coherent thoughts. She couldn't hold back a scream as she saw the protrusion of the thin shaft from the assailant that had effortlessly forced its way through Emily's Kevlar and pierced her chest. The light caught a glimmer of the crimson liquid as it escaped and pooled into the now damp dirt. JJ ran to her side and could feel the tears as they streamed down her face and the sobs choked her as they remained caught in her throat.

Her brain shut off in an effort to not accept what she was seeing. JJ couldn't stop the shaking that had began to overwhelm her as she looked into the vacant dark eyes of her friend and followed the single line of blood that trailed from her mouth. She slowly reached out to her pale neck but knew she would not feel the desired thumping of Emily's heart on the tips of her fingers. She held her fingers in their position in hopes a pulse would appear but JJ knew better. She could no longer hold back the sobs that escaped and she begged for it not to be true. She gently caressed Emily's forehead and cheek as she continued to plead for her to come back. Her head had dropped in defeat when a sudden voice from behind her shook her back to reality.

"It's your fault Jennifer."

She turned to see the woman she just saved standing over her.

"Did you hear me JJ? Jennifer?"

She looked back to her friend and felt the nausea overwhelm her.

"No!" She cried and placed her arm across Emily's unmoving chest and buried her head.

The voice was there again and more forceful, "Jennifer, do you hear me?"

"Stop!" She yelled back and shot up to face the accuser.

The bright light of the morning sun assaulted her eyes. JJ blinked and when she regained focus she saw Will leaning over her, and his face was full of concern. JJ couldn't allow herself to look at him and she focused on trying to control the tremors as they wracked her body. She closed her eyes again to try and shake the feeling the nightmare always left in its wake.

"JJ it's okay." Will tried to assure as he stroked her arm gently. She couldn't help but cringe and turn away. She climbed out of the bed and pushed her way into the bathroom.

"You can't keep blaming yourself." He called after her. She wanted to slam the door to not hear his words, but found she didn't have the energy to even do that. She clung to the sink and avoided the mirror and what she could only imagine as her horrid appearance.

She shook her head and responded back, "How can you say that Will? You have no clue what happened out there."

"No but I know she doesn't blame you and wouldn't want you to dwell."

She felt her hands squeeze the edge of the tile as she fought the nausea that came on in a sudden wave. She swallowed and choked out a response and didn't hold back the irritation that was laced in her tone. "Right, and you had a conversation with her and she told you that."

"Don't be like that."

JJ didn't want to hear the hurt in his voice and felt the guilt of how she had been treating him since they returned from the real nightmare. He tried to be as supportive as he could but he hadn't been out there in the darkness with them, and she found herself pushing him away. He had respected her desire for space but it didn't help her guilt.

She moved back into the room and her head fell forward, "I'm sorry its just I'm so scared to face everyone."

Will pulled her into a hug and she didn't attempt to resist and placed her head on his shoulder. She fought the tears that began to well up in her eyes and she was surprised that she had any left to shed.

Will spoke softly into her ear, "you don't have to go back it hasn't even been a week. Maybe you need to give it some more time."

She pulled away and stood up a little taller, "no I need to go back, I can't hide any more."

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><p><em>Hope you liked it and I'd love to hear what you think!<em>

_Oh I almost forgot thank you to Honorcpt for the push! :O)_

_Also I hope to have Locked Out finished and up soon..fingers crossed!_


	2. Unreachable

_Thank you so much for the encouragement and interest! I have enjoyed reading all the different takes on the last chapter. I forget that I have the story in my head and its unknown to everyone else! ^-^_

_Also I forgot to say that the story is about two years post Doyle._

_Happy reading!_

_Oh and the italics are flashbacks...:)_

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><p>Unreachable<p>

_The desperate quiet that hovered through the jet was almost a tangible thing. Everyones personal anxiety and pain that exuded outward filled the air in an almost suffocating mass. It hung heavily over their heads and pressed down and felt that any moment would consume and envelope them. _

_It was not uncommon for there to be a case that left its talons in them or a flight back that held everyone hostage, but this time it was the reintroduction of buried feelings and memories that were thicker and heavier. It had been almost two years since anyone had felt this aching pain that clenched every molecule of their being. _

_David Rossi stood back and pretended to care about fixing a cup of coffee. He took the false task to steal glances at the empty faces of the others. He searched to find the one that needed to release, or more realistically allow him to put his mind to something other than his own pain that the last days had built up._

_He knew who he needed and wanted to talk to but she was unreachable at that moment. He kept his eyes moving and slowed to Derek who distanced himself with his headphones. Rossi knew he pretended to sleep but his eyes flickered with memories. He could not control his facial twitches that gave his visions away and they would occasionally spring open briefly when they became too realistic. He'd look around in hopes no one discovered his secret then close them again to continue to hide. _

_Spencer stared blankly at a page of a book he had not changed from the time he opened it to attempt an escape from his own mind. The book was failing at its purpose but he held strong to continue to block the pain. Dave knew he felt his stare but didn't attempt to meet it. He just swallowed and blinked rapidly as he adjusted the book in his hands. _

_Dave caught Hotch conducting the same assessments from the front of the plane. Their eyes met briefly and the two elder profilers acknowledged the severity of the situation. This was a priority to deal with. The solidity of the team needed to remain intact and he felt the responsibility to at the very least fill in the cracks and chips._

_When his eyes finally landed on the blonde he felt his stomach turn at her pain. They all felt it but she wore it so clearly on her face. She remained frozen in the seat and paler than usual. Her brilliant blue eyes were clouded and glazed in her distant thoughts. Her only visible movement was the subtle rise and fall of her chest._

_Dave knew he had no words to make her feel any better but felt she needed to be taken out of her self induced punishment. He slid passed the doorframe and slowly lowered himself into the leather seat directly across from her. She did not acknowledge his presence and kept her stare to the dark night that flew past the small window._

_He took a forced sip from his coffee as he contemplated his first words, and then placed the mug on the small table between them. He cleared his throat to make his presence known and that he was planning on shaking her into a conversation._

_Her eyes moved to his and he took the cue to open the gates. He tested the waters with a casual statement so he could get a better read on how he needed to approach the conversation._

_He glanced at his watch as he spoke softly, "I would think we should be home in time for you to read Henry to sleep."_

_She turned her head to face him and pursed her lips into a forced crease of a smile that was quickly chased away as if she had no right to have any emotions other than the ones that tormented her._

_"I know this may be hard to understand at first. In the lifetime and experience of profiling you are still relatively young."_

_When she continued to sit in silence he leaned in to engage her more, "look JJ you can't blame yourself for anything. There is no flawless profile."_

_She squinted her eyes at him and she responded in a whisper, "if it was you don't tell me you wouldn't. Or even standing on the other side see what I've caused." Her jaw clenched and she took a quick look behind her, "look at everyone how is this not my fault?"_

_He shrugged and sighed lightly, "It really could have been any of us."_

_"But it wasn't." Her eyes shot to him and he saw the pain flooding hers, "it makes sense now but how was it missed?"_

_Dave did his best to explain; to try and give perspective. "He fit all the elements of the profile but there are always the unknowns. We knew he would have Carol Smith in a life and death situation that we would have to attempt to prevent. We missed it with Janice Beck, but we found Carol in time." He took in a deep breath and held it briefly before he continued, "that has to count for something."_

_He was not surprised that she didn't find any comfort in his analysis. He wasn't speaking about anything that would solve the issue that consumed her. The case itself didn't matter anymore and he knew it but he wanted to give some positive in all the negative that surrounded them. _

__She was determined to rehash the events and try to recreate a different outcome._"Emily knew that something wasn't right and tried to stop me." As she spoke she turned her head back to lose her focus again out the jet's window. "I didn't listen, its my fault. I hit the trip wire." _

_Dave let the silence once again surround them as he realized that there was no comfort to be had that night._

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><p>As the elevator rose JJ felt her heart begin to race a little more as the numbers flashed to the next indicating the passing of the floors. When the small box finally ceased and the doors opened on the sixth floor she felt her stomach in her throat. She paused before she broke the barrier of the security to her possible escape. She fought her internal battle of taking more time but knew better. She tried to swallow the fear to step over the line of unknown and face the consequences of her decisions.<p>

She hesitantly stepped out and took a quick look around. She fooled herself into thinking she was prepared but her insecurities swirled in her head. As she approached the glass doors her eyes landed on Derek. He stood over Spencer and his brow was creased into a serious scowl. His arms crossed tightly across his chest as he listened to Spencer speak. The younger agent's face held a solemn look and as he spoke to Derek he leaned back in his chair and spun a pen in his fingers. She tried not to imagine what they were conversing about it was just more torture to think it was about her.

JJ swallowed again and with a breath pushed through the doors. Her heart sank a little more when she saw Emily's vacant desk. She couldn't take her eyes off it as she moved to take her place at her own.

Spencer was the first to see her and rose to greet her. Derek moved to the side and acknowledged her with a subtle nod. She tried to read them, but found she was at a loss. She had not spoken to anyone besides Rossi on the flight and even that conversation did her no good. She had run away from everyone before anyone could unleash what she could only imagine was their anger and hurt. She felt slight relief when she didn't feel any animosity from the two profilers and released a breath she had not realized she was holding.

She had not heard Spencer's greeting as she turned her eyes back to the empty desk.

She only looked up when Derek's strong voice snapped her out of her daze.

"JJ?" She flinched slightly as his hand gently brushed her shoulder, "hey JJ you okay?"

She looked to the dark agent and let out a small nervous laugh, "No, yeah fine I just-"

The two men held themselves for her to continue but she was interrupted by Hotch who appeared from behind them. He looked up from the file he had and closed it as he addressed the circle of agents, "Conference room in five, Strauss wants us to gather to de brief as a team."

"I thought we already handled that?" Derek asked.

Hotch looked over, "she feels there is more that needs to be dealt with."

Derek shrugged his shoulders and rolled his eyes at the answer. His scowl remained on his face as excused himself to get a cup of coffee before the interrogation. JJ felt a pang of guilt to his emotional state and felt herself wanting to run again. She quickly looked back to whatever was in front of her.

Aaron glanced from Derek's retreating form to JJ. "Welcome back." His words hit her hard even though is tone was sincere and kind.

"Thank you sir." JJ felt her voice catch and cursed herself for not having enough control to avoid an emotional response to a generous greeting. She could feel his profiling eyes on her and was not surprised when he asked her to join him in his office before the meeting.

JJ avoided the concerned look of Spencer and followed Aaron to the stairs that led to the office. The conversations and her responses she had anticipated ran through her head but they began to meld and become ambiguous and useless. She focused on being able to stand tall and not show too much of her weakness.

She was a step behind him and he paused at the door to shut it after she entered.

JJ stopped abruptly and watched as he circled around to his desk.

As he pulled his chair out he gestured for her to have a seat. "How are you doing?"

She tentatively sat down and intertwined her fingers in her lap. "I'm fine sir."

"Are you sure?" He asked then gestured out of the room. "You seemed pretty shook up out there."

She knew it was a lie to say that she was okay. Her nightmares and guilt took more of a toll on her than she'd like to admit. She continued her attempt to hold strong.

"If you need some more time, it is perfectly understandable."

She felt herself straighten a little more. She was afraid of this that he thought she couldn't handle it. She had no reason not to be back. A mild concussion and a few stitches were what she convinced herself was the reason that she had to take some leave. She knew he wasn't referring to her physical state. She did her best to convince him otherwise.

He seemed to buy it and nodded to her determination. As she rose to leave his words grated her but she knew they were coming.

"JJ you've got to realize that its not your fault. You will just drive yourself crazy, and Emily would not want you to beat yourself up as much as you are."

"Then why isn't she here?" She asked in an almost pleading voice as her eyes caught the desk that remained untouched.

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><p><em>The darkness was an unrelenting beast. It devoured the small lights that attempted to put a dent in its almost impenetrable armor. Derek's efforts to break through and comprehend what was unfolding were as fruitless as anyone else's who was running behind him. The sudden silence of the two woman became unnerving and he moved faster to reach their location. He frantically searched through the abyss of black for the familiar forms to come into focus. He only saw Carol as she spun and kicked to fight the tightened rope that resisted her in hopes to achieve its goal. He swung his light around and caught a flash of blonde that began to rise slowly from the ground. As he called out and moved his foot caught itself on a familiar barrier that gave way to his force. Morgan jerked around to shed a line light to see <em>more clearly <em>what was under him. As his eyes landed on her he felt his heart pound harder against his chest._

_He barely felt the wave of agents and officers as they swarmed passed. He didn't see Hotch pull up to help JJ, or Reid and Rossi save Carol from her intended death. All he saw was flashes of the past run through his mind. He found himself frozen in a familiar fear, one that had crept up and throttled him. JJ's panicked cry snapped him back to the present and the need to act came rushing back to him._

_The flash lights danced around and he could not hold his and properly see the damage. _

_"I need more light over here!" He released his anger to the chaos around him for some form of focus to the urgency that lay in front of him._

_His breath held itself as he explored his fallen partner. He felt the air pulled from his lungs and a knot twist in his stomach as he examined the arrow that inserted itself into her. He spoke softly and encouraging but the scared and distant look in her eyes was enough to know she was experiencing the same flashbacks that he was._

_'This has to be different' was all he kept repeating to himself as traced the shaft of the arrow to its entry point._

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><p><em>AN I apologize for cutting it there, I know I said that what happened to Emily would be revealed but it wasn't working quite like I had in my head. As I wrote it changed so I'm flushing my idea out better. I hope to have her POV and more details up in the next chapter as soon as I can._

_As always I love to hear thoughts on what you've read! Thank you for reading!_


	3. Going Back

So sorry for the delay. I was at a loss to how I wanted to proceed, but have a direction now! This chapter answers a few questions but also sets up for the rest of the story.

As always thank you so much for reading and reviews always leave me with a smile! I hope you enjoy!

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><p>Going Back<p>

_Everything about the situation screamed urgency but it read wrong and Emily felt it in her gut; It was almost too easy. The UnSub was trying to tell a story and the BAU were main characters in his delusion. They had not figured out their roles soon enough with the last victims but knew he would move onto this scenario. Prentiss knew something was missing from it, and that they were not going to be able to just stroll up to Carol and untie her from the death trap. It was too dark to really see their entire environment and she needed time to run the profile again in her head to hopefully figure it out. _

_She put her arm out to halt their movements so they both could analyze, but she had felt the impatience that emanated from the blonde. It was then that everything began to unfold at an uncontrolled pace. She didn't have a chance to voice her concern before JJ's frustration boiled over and she moved away from her. Emily yelled out in vain and as she took a step to intervene an unexpected force collided with her. The momentum spun her backwards and just as she realized she had lost her footing her back was already flat against the ground. _

_She stared up to the dark forms of the trees above her, and her instincts kept her still so she could get some bearings of what had happened. She hadn't heard a gun firing or saw another person around to incite a blow. Her eyes slowly moved and focused on the object that jetted up from her and the pain came on as a sudden as the realization of what it was. She couldn't move her arm without causing more agony from the wound. She determined she needed to remain still in an attempt not to exacerbate the injury. _

_She closed her eyes to some how gain control of the pain and emotional upheaval the sudden situation brought on. She couldn't have her eyes open without seeing the stake that had taken a chunk of her life away and changed her for good. It had been almost two years since her tortured soul was faced with the aftermath of Ian Doyle. She had finally felt like she could move on and that everyone had as well. The scars were still there but had faded and she was finally able to take a deep breath when her real life had begun again._

_The cold and unforgiving ground didn't help the memories of the nightmare. But this was a new one that she was not sure the outcome. An array of voices brought her back to the present but she dare not open her eyes in a desperate attempt to avoid the view of the slender wood that shot vertically out from her. A rough kick jolted her leg, and the movement of her body elicited a sharp searing pain that radiated from her shoulder. Once again she had too pull all of her energy to regulate her response to it all. _

_When she felt she could handle it enough she opened her eyes and came in contact with Morgan. He stood over her and stared for moment but a sudden terrified cry filled the dark air around them and it snapped him out of his stupor and he moved to her quickly._

_'"Prentiss, don't move." He shown his light over her and spoke gently but a small panic held onto the end of his words, "You're going to be okay."_

_He gently moved his hand over the wood and down and yelled out into the darkness for help. JJ suddenly appeared in her eye line and Emily directed her attention to her in hopes for a distraction._

_She saw the small trail of blood that ran down her cheek that originated from a gash on her forehead. Even in her state of shock she could see JJ was just as rattled, her eyes were filled with panic and pain. Her lips moved but no words came out, and when Hotch tried to move her she pushed him away and returned to her post and knelt next to her._

_Morgan's voice continued to fill the air but she didn't put his words together. She knew the Medics were on the way, but Emily wanted to beg for anyone to take the arrow out. She wanted to cry out in the agony she felt but she kept her core concentration on not losing it. All of her outward appearance would look like the statue of self while her insides screamed and moved in a chaos of unruly emotions. The best way she knew to control was to retreat into herself and not look to what was happening over her._

_As the seconds passed everything began to feel as it moved in slow motion. The Medics appeared and spoke quickly, and became a blur of movement. She could only answer in nods as she found her mouth to be dry and her voice would not cooperate._

_She watched as they cut the shaft and she felt a flood of relief to not have to look at it any longer. She felt the pressure of the massive dressings they surrounded her shoulder with and heard their explanations to Morgan to why they couldn't take it out._

_"Ma'am?" The man repeated and Emily suddenly realized the words were directed to her. She moved her eyes to acknowledge the man. "Ma'am we need to move you so we can get you on the backboard."_

_"Do it," she forced out through gritted teeth._

_Gingerly the Medics rolled her to the side and Emily bit back the cry that she caught in her throat. The pain became almost unbearable and she fought the black that danced in the corners of her mind. The last thing she saw was the flashing of the ambulance lights and a Medic relaying to the hospital her condition before she gave into the darkness._

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><p>Aaron watched the blonde as she paced the small office unaware of her actions. He became more concerned with her state. "Jennifer sit down please."<p>

She turned and looked at him in shock. "But the meeting?"

"Strauss can wait. Tell me what's going on."

JJ moved and retook her place in the chair in front of him, "I'm not sure." She ran a shaky hand through her hair and released a deep sigh.

"JJ everyday we encounter danger and we know the risks."

"I understand that things happen that are out of our control but I just can't stop replaying what I could have done different."

"What do you mean?"

"I thought Emily was taking too long to make a decision, she didn't relay to me that she thought there could be a trap."

Aaron leaned back in his chair as he spoke, "did you give her a chance? Everything happened faster than you realize. But I don't think that is what is really bothering you."

"No." She answered honestly and took another breath, "I don't know."

Her eyes looked past him as she recalled a memory. "When you helped me up and I saw Derek leaning over her I thought she was dead. I can't get it out of my head."

Aaron began to understand what was troubling JJ and wanted to solve it quickly before it could build anymore. "This situation is not the same as what happened with Doyle. You understand that right?"

She didn't respond at first so he continued to make his point heard, "listen to me. It's been two years and as no one is expected to just move on, but I think this team has done quite a good job to let go."

At his words her eyes shot up and she bit back the bitterness in her tone, "Have they? Where you on the same flight as me?"

"Yes, but no one blames you and you can't beat yourself up so much."

"I get it Hotch, but it's easier to let go when you're not the cause of it." She looked back out the window and sighed, "I guess I just need to talk to Emily."

Aaron nodded and began to stand, "I agree with you. Now let's get to that meeting. It looks like we're going back."

"What? I thought another team took over the case?"

"They did but came up empty, he stopped." Aaron grabbed the file on his desk and spoke as he started for the door. "The Bureau didn't want to waste the money and brought them back."

"So why are we going back if he stopped."

"Because he hasn't, he just stalled. Come on everyone will be filled in at the meeting."

JJ moved to follow Aaron towards the conference room, and saw everyone had already taken a seat. She found herself not making eye contact with anyone, but felt their stares held concern more than anything else. She was surprised that it helped her relax a little more.

Strauss stood patiently as JJ sat and Aaron took his place to the side of the table.

Strauss looked around then at her watch. "I'll give a few more minutes then we'll just have to start."

The other looked around and JJ saw that Penelope was not in the room yet. She remembered the panicked phone conversation they had on the way to the hospital, and the guilt came rushing back. She kept her eyes out the door and waited like everyone else. The only sound was the clock ticking above them, and it became louder and JJ felt like it was mocking her. She took in a deep breath and when she looked around she saw Rossi starring at her.

He squinted at her then nodded his head towards the door. She felt her heart cease for a moment in her chest as she looked out the door but felt somewhat disappointed as she saw Garcia come into view.

Penelope held a smile on her face and as she entered the room fully and that was when JJ saw the brunette make her way passed the doorway.

She looked around quickly and then directed herself to Strauss, "I'm sorry my appointment went later than expected."

She pulled the chair next to her out and slowly sat down and covered her pain with a smile to the group. JJ wanted to make eye contact with her and see where they possibly stood but the timing was wrong and Emily was avoiding any contact. She just looked at the Section Chief as she spoke about what had happened in the dark woods.

JJ did not even acknowledge the meeting until Hotch began to speak and caught her attention.

"As it has been noted all communication with the UnSub had been ceased the day after we left."

Garcia spoke up, "the trail went cold, ice cold. This man dropped off the planet."

Aaron nodded to Garcia who pressed a button and a video came up on the screen.

The Unit Chief continued, "The team that replaced us hit a wall. The UnSub stopped his cycle and stopped his communications. With three days of no leads the team was required to come back, and left in the hands of the Agents and law enforcement there."

Erin Strauss took Aaron's pause to fill in more information, "four days after they retuned back a note, photos and a video was received by Agent Herst. He sent it to us immediately."

Penelope pressed the remote and turned away so she didn't have to watch what happened.

The video began to play and they saw that two woman occupied a small room. It was plain room with no telling features, there was no furniture or windows. The only detail that gave any clues was a single door stood wide open on the other side of them. A brunette woman was bound to a chain on the wall. The other, a blonde, paced nervously around. The door across from them was open to the outdoors. The unshackled woman continued to move along what seemed to be an invisible line. Twice the UnSub came in with a mask on and appeared to rape her. At this JJ felt her stomach turn, she wanted to look away but forced herself to continue to watch. She couldn't understand why she didn't make a move to escape. There must have been an unknown factor that only the women knew.

The video continued and finally the blonde made a move to escape out the open door and was returned to the room minutes later. The UnSub pushed her onto the ground and walked over to the brunette and quickly slit her throat. Then repeated the action to the blonde and nonchalantly walked out of the cameras view.

The room remained silent as the video turned off. The heavy air was broken when Rossi cleared his throat, "He changed his MO."

Morgan looked at the pictures that lay in front of him, "How do we know its the same UnSub?"

Reid spoke quickly in an effort to get his words out, "because he still has a story to tell. He's moved on from law enforcement making the decisions to save his victims to leaving it in the hands of the victims themselves. The blonde could have escaped at anytime but knew by crossing the line it would mean death for her friend. It was only until she couldn't take the torture anymore she thought of herself and made an escape."

Aaron acknowledged the concerns, "We know his narcissistic personality does not allow him to be ignored for long. The note that came with the video is telling."

"What does it say?" Emily asked and looked to Reid who pulled it in front of him.

"_I am the rule maker of this game. I expect all my players to return and for only my rules to be followed._"

Rossi spoke up, "he was insulted that we passed the case over when Emily was injured."

Aaron nodded at Garcia to move on to the next photo.

Strauss stood back center and spoke, "these are the most recent missing persons and have been included in his package."

As the photos came across the screen Prentiss sat up, "does anyone else see that?"

"What?"

"The resemblance. He saw us as characters in his delusion. Now that we are no longer _players_ as he says he has created surrogates. The two woman a blonde and brunette and these men a muscular African American and a guy that looks an awful lot like Reid."

Rossi nodded, "Emily's right. He won't stop until we're there and giving him the attention he craves. We need to let him think he is in control. He is bound to make a mistake, and we need to be in front of him when he does."

Aaron's face grimaced and he looked around the table, "wheels up in twenty."

Before the team departed Strauss directed herself to Emily, "I'm sorry Agent Prentiss but your injuries are too severe to allow you to accompany the team. If you feel up to it you can stay here and help Garcia with this end."

Emily nodded, "I understand."

Reid shook her head, "I'm sorry ma'am, but didn't the note say _all_ the players. If the whole team is not there he might not continue to give us pieces to finding him."

JJ felt anxious to this prospect and finally spoke up, "how will the UnSub even know if she's there? If she doesn't go into the field-"

"Unless he has surveillance and watches our arrival."

Aaron crossed his arms and let out a deep sigh, "unfortunately Reid's right. Prentiss as I'd prefer you stayed to recover fully your appearance will be necessary. You will stay at the field office and at most assist Agent Herst and work from that angle."

He then squared himself to her, "do you feel up to that?"

She held his stare and answered in a determined voice, "of course, anything to stop this son of a bitch."

He looked from her to Strauss who shrugged at the new decision, and followed the others out of the room.

Emily lingered for a moment as the others left, and JJ stopped at the door and turned to face the brunette. She saw her wall fall for a moment but was reinforced when she realized she was seen. JJ was more than concerned for her to go, and she took their time alone to voice it.

"Em, are you sure you should go?"

"I'll be fine. We need to keep our attention on the case."

"Of course." She remained at the door and wanted to have her most desired conversation, but knew by Emily's comment that she was not interested in it. She tried to formulate the words so she could find some comfort in the situation. She appreciated that Emily stood patiently in front of her.

Finally she asked the simple question that ate at her since they had parted ways, "are we okay?"

"Why wouldn't we be?"

"I guess I just want to make sure you still trust me."

Emily raised an eyebrow and then blinked slowly, "no Jen I think you need to be asking yourself if you trust me."

The woman stared at each other for a moment and JJ found herself unable to respond.

Emily then moved passed the blonde, "I'll see you on the jet."

JJ tried not to let the words sting but let them as she felt she deserved it.

She was more determined to have a real conversation but knew it wouldn't come until after the case.

* * *

><p>Agent Damon Herst paced impatiently for the BAU to make their appearance back into his field office.<p>

He glanced at his watch again and as he looked to the door he felt himself breath when they entered one at a time. He was shocked at first there were only three of them. They formed around him and he greeted and thanked them for coming back.

He directed himself to the Unit Chief, "thank you for responding so quickly. I fear this guy has escalated. I have everything still set up over here." He pointed to the corner that had the three boards.

"Coffees brewing and is terrible but-"

Aaron cut him off and his steal glare looked from him to the others next him, "thank you, but we need to move quickly. I have three Agents at the latest dump site. Have you received anymore letters or videos?"

"No just what I sent you. Also Sir, if you don't mind I have brought in Detective Bane. He grew up here and knows every trail and backwoods. He could be helpful finding this guys location."

JJ was the first to speak up and show concern for a new player, "Is he up to speed on the case?"

"Yes I am and ready to go," the large man walked up behind Damon and out stretched his hand, "Agent Jareau I presume."

She nodded and returned the hand gesture, "yes, and this is Agent Hotchner and Prentiss."

He gestured a greeting and looked to the brunette, "so you were the unfortunate one huh?"

She gave a forced smile, "looks like it."

Aaron redirected everyones attention to him and looked to the woman next to him, "JJ and I are going to the Coroners."

Bane spoke with a gruff tone and moved to be in front of Damon, "I'll go with you if you don't mind, Sir."

Aaron stared at the man and paused but slowly relented, "Okay. Prentiss will stay here with you Agent Herst and continue going over the victimology and call Richard Karl and Nick Fuller's family for interviews."

Damon watched the brunette acknowledge her boss and moved slowly passed everyone and gave a eye to him before she passed. He couldn't read it at first but shrugged it off and turned to follow. He wondered how much work they'd really get done, or more realistically him. She looked like she still needed to be in bed even maybe still in the hospital. He was there that night and saw the trauma. He was not the only one shocked that she had survived and walked into the building. Now here she stood arm in sling and face of stone to cover any sign that the ordeal affected her at all.

He watched as all of the others moved out. He then turned back to Emily. "Would like some coffee?"

She didn't look at him but cocked her head and answered in an almost whisper, "no thank you."

"Okay." He shrugged and moved to his desk and picked up a file. He didn't look at it and watched the woman's movements. She caught him and he felt the fire her stare held.

"Do you want to make the phone calls or me?"

He straightened up at the cold directness of her tone, "I'll do it. Why don't you take a seat and do what ever it is you do."

She didn't answer him and turned away and slowly sat down in the chair at the small table that faced the boards.

He tried to accept that her injury probably dictated her attitude but found he had to find a way to control the anger that began to boil up at the woman.

* * *

><p><em>So should pick up next chapter! Thank you for reading and please if you feel so inclined I'd love to hear your thoughts!<em>


	4. The Inside Track

_So another chapter and it will take a turn from here. Hope you like the direction!_

_Happy reading!_

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><p>The Inside Track<p>

Emily felt exhausted, and being stuck in a stuffy office with an annoying man didn't help. She figured she wasn't being fair to the guy but there was something about him that just rubbed her wrong. Her own situation didn't allow her to delve into his issues and she knew she needed to focus on the case.

The flight was two hours of pounding old and new information, an hour drive on a bumpy road and now straight into the case. All of these factors were not unusual but where contributors to her tipping point. Her body ached and the slightest movement sent excruciating tremors through her body. When she signed out of the hospital AMA she had not really anticipated to be anywhere but her own apartment and bed. She figured her own self induced bed rest would be the recover she needed.

Now she found herself staring at the board in front of her but her mind was blank, and she wondered if she was even a productive member of the team.

"He's extremely smart, always seems a step ahead of you."

Agent Herst comment took her aback. He had been silent most of the afternoon as he went through files and made phone calls. She turned her eyes upward to him as he towered over her.

"You're giving him too much credit," she retorted but tried to hold back the annoyance in her voice.

The man shrugged and gestured towards the victim board, "well I don't know, you're not any closer than before ya'll left. And he manipulated the situation enough to even drag you back out here."

Emily felt herself tense more at his comments. She no longer tried to control her tone. "No one dragged me out here. And as for _him_ we play his game to a point to get into his head and then we can get ahead of him."

He moved back slightly and crossed his arms, "if you say so. It just seems maybe he has an inside track."

Before she could respond she saw her phone begin to vibrate on the table. She began to rise slowly from her chair, "excuse me it's Hotch."

Herst put his hand up for her to sit back down, "no I'll step away. Please stay."

Emily gave him the best appreciative smile she could and when she felt she was not in earshot she answered her phone, "Prentiss."

"The coroner said that there was no sign of sexual assault on Rachel."

"But what about the video?"

"I don't know. It could have been psychological torture, and a show for the camera. We just assumed that was what he was doing."

Emily just nodded and looked back over to Herst. "I've been trying to figure out how he could constantly be ahead of us and Herst said something."

"What was that?"

"That he seems to have an inside track. Do you think the UnSub is a part of the investigation?"

Hotch was silent on the other end. As she waited for him to ponder her question she continued to stare at the victims on the board. The new victims were surrogates for the team, they knew that much. They needed to get ahead of him before he got brave enough and the team was put in serious danger. She was uneasy with them even being in the field. Of course they could take care of themselves but she felt like they were sitting ducks with this guy.

She had told Herst that they were in control but she wasn't really sure how much they really were. Hotch's sudden voice snapped her back to the conversation they were having.

"Have Garcia check everyone out. Anyone, even volunteers that were on the tip lines. Do you have someone in mind?"

"I don't know. I just find it strange that Bane was brought in."

"Okay, we're on our way back." He paused before he hung up, "You still doing okay?"

"Yes, sir." It was a blatant lie but she needed to make sure everyones focus was on the case. She pressed end and set her phone down. Her free hand went to her pocket and she slowly spun the pill bottle that occupied it.

She tried to muscle through and not have to take the pain killers. She thought it best to keep a clear head but the uncomfortable chairs and the long hours began to take their toll. Unfortunately all of her thoughts now went to trying to control the pain or not move to exasperate it further.

She slowly got up and breathed out to release the cutting misery that shook her body. It became an overwhelming task to cover the agony her body was feeling and it was breaking her down faster. She glanced over to Damon Herst who she knew was pretending to not pay attention to her. Since their arrival he went from grateful they were there to almost annoyed at the lack of progress. He was getting persistent and she just read it as the pressure he felt from his superiors to solve the case. She moved to the break room for some solitude and to call Garcia.

* * *

><p>Agent Herst stood back by his desk and observed the brunette as she sat and spoke quietly into her phone. He was curious to know what the conversation was about but he had seen the light click in her eyes when he brought up the idea of an inside man.<p>

She slouched slightly in the chair she occupied in obvious pain. Before the team left he over heard Hotchner tell her if she needed to go back to the hotel and rest to do so, but she was being overly stubborn. When she slowly rose and began to make a move to the break room Damon pretended to occupy himself with the file in his hand and acted like he had not seen her get up.

He quietly moved to follow her and came up to her struggling to open a bottle of pills.

"Need some help?"

His sudden voice startled her and she jumped and turned to face him, "no its fine," she answered quickly and shoved the bottle into her pocket.

He stepped closer, "painful thing you went through huh?"

She gave him a questioning look and responded in a short clip, "yeah I guess." She was quick to redirect the conversation, "Did you get a chance to contact Richard's fiancé?"

He took another step then stopped by the counter and leaned against it, "no answer yet. Hopefully she returns the call. I'll try again."

He could see she was putting all of her effort in covering the obvious agony she was in, but she could not cover it as it filled her eyes. She gave a small crease of a smile then excused herself to exit the room and as she did she pulled out her phone.

Damon made a move before she could exit and put his hand out, "so do you think the UnSub could be working the case?"

She straitened up at his words and he saw the shock in her eyes. He had brought it up but wanted to see if she had gone with it.

She tilted her head at him, "at this point we can't rule anything out, and you yourself suggested it."

"Okay then." He let himself give a smile them moved slightly so she could continue to create distance between them.

As he watched her he grabbed his phone and pressed his speed dial.

"Its time."

"Right," the voice on the other end said quickly before the line was broken.

Damon moved out of the small break room and looked around the office to see who occupied the space. Lucky for him only a few Agents lingered. He walked over to Emily and placed a firm hand on her shoulder and squeezed. He enjoyed the feeling of her body as it sank in the pain he caused. He knew she would not verbalize, and luckily her back was turned to everyone so no one saw her tortured face.

As she looked up to him in the agony he caused he smiled down to her, "I'm sorry. You don't look like you're doing very well, maybe you need to go back to the hotel and rest."

She tried to move away from him and he took a quick look around and when he was satisfied no one was aware of what was happening he placed his hand once again on her shoulder as a warning.

"I'll happily drive you Agent Prentiss."

He could see her wheels turning to figure out the situation but he had the upper hand and she knew it. Her movements were slow at best and she looked on the verge of passing out. It would work to his advantage if she did, and he contemplated sending her to that point but it made the game more of a challenge to get out unsuspected.

He stood up and motioned for her to move, "Let's go, and turn your phone off and leave it."

She rose slowly and did not take her eyes off of him. She opened her mouth to speak but snapped it shut as he moved his hand towards her.

"Don't make this difficult Emily. I don't think you'll be able to handle it."

She barely nodded and moved in front of him. He walked closely behind and redirected her when she wavered a few times. It played perfectly as there were no questioning eyes from the others in the room, they just held concern. He shot them a fake look of his own concern, but he wanted to burst into laughter at how easy it really was.

At a few points on the way to the parking garage he felt like she was stalling and he'd nudge her forward and was rewarded by an almost silent whimper. When they reached his car he leaned passed her and opened the passenger side. She hesitated and looked back at him. He could see her actually contemplating how to fight back. He let out a small chuckle and forcefully pushed her into the seat. The action caused her to cry out, but he slammed the door fast enough that it didn't echo through the garage.

He moved around and slide smoothly into the seat and smiled over to her. "This is going to be fun. Smile."

"Fuck you." She hissed through her teeth and clenched jaw.

"Ohh such strong words, " he half laughed. He paused to watch her attempt to regain her breath and she held herself tightly. She had herself pushed against the door the furthest she could get away from him.

He moved his hand to the center console and opened it. "This is for my own good."

As he spoke he quickly stabbed the syringe he had concealed into her neck. His heart raced with her reaction as she tried to move but the sedative took hold before she could do anything. He started the car just as her unconscious form slouched further into the seat next to him.

* * *

><p>Like? Love to know!<p>

Thanks for reading!


	5. As it Unravels

_Thank you all so much for review alerts and favs! Makes me super happy!_

_This is short but felt it necessary to get up.._

_Happy reading! (warning for some swearing..)_

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><p>As it Unravels<p>

Morgan rubbed his hand over his head in frustration and tossed the cell phone he had onto the table. The rattle of it as it reverberated across the wood startled Reid and he shot a look to the dark agent. Morgan disregarded him and turned away and once again focused on the door.

When Rossi's stare bore into him he was quick to direct his frustration at him, "It's just not like her not to tell anyone where she's going. She was supposed to stay here anyway, and why is Herst not answering?"

"Because my phone was on silent, sorry."

Derek spun around to face the Agent as he made strides towards him. He looked passed him in hopes to see Emily, but her absents only made his irritation escalated.

"So you want to tell me what's going on? Where's Prentiss?"

"She wasn't feeling well so I took her back to the Hotel to rest."

The words halted Reid's actions as he marked the map in front of him. He dropped his hand and turned to give a confused look to Damon.

"Back to the Hotel?" He moved his questioning eyes to Rossi and then to Morgan. When they did not verbally respond he questioned Damon again, "Is she okay? That doesn't sound like her."

Damon almost seemed insulted with the question and as he answered he glared a warning to the young agent. "Yeah, actually she was pretty bad, she nearly passed out on me." He threw his hands up in an irritated gesture. "I basically had to use physical force to get her to leave. She wanted to fight me on it that's for sure."

"Now that does sound like her." Rossi spoke with a calm and knowing voice. He leaned back in his chair and let his head fall in a slight nod, "we'll give her an hour or so before we check on her."

Morgan eyed Damon but was somewhat satisfied with the answer and gave a forced a smile. "Okay then, so why is Hotch and JJ not back yet either?"

"Call them," Rossi suggested.

Derek agreed and pulled his phone off its holder and was about to press Hotch's speed dial when a bloody and beaten Detective Bane stumbled into the office.

Morgan set his phone down and ran up to the injured Detective, "Hey man you okay?"

He only nodded and let Morgan direct him to a chair.

Reid called out to the men as he moved to the break room, "I'll get a towel and find some ice."

Morgan gave a slight nod to Reid before he put all of his attention to the broken man as he began to speak.

"I couldn't stop the guy, he came out of no where."

"What are you talking about?" Herst blurted out which in turn incited a sharp look from Morgan.

Bane looked from the others then back to Derek, "A man jumped out in front of us. Agent Hotchner swerved to miss him, I thought he was successful but Agent Jareau swore he was hurt. So we got out to investigate and that was when it all went to hell."

When Spencer pulled up with the ice he gave a silent thank you and looked back to Morgan, "I don't know what happened I was out before I saw anything." He winced as he carefully placed the ice on his swollen cheek.

"We need to get you to a hospital." Herst directed from behind everyone.

"No," Bane said as he looked passed the others to make eye contact with Damon. He tried to speak in a convincing voice, "No, I'll be fine."

Morgan shot his arm up and pointed to the Spencer, "Reid call Garcia and try to get a trace on their phones."

Bane stopped his movement when he put his hand up, "No good they're in the SUV with their guns."

The blanks to where the two FBI Agents were had not being filled in fast enough for Morgan and he slammed his hand on the desk next to him. The tension in the room began to rise at a frantic rate and all eyes moved from the injured detective to the fuming agent.

Rossi crossed his arms and grabbed Bane's attention, "Did you get a look at the guy?"

"No, he was wearing a hood. He was 6'3" 6'5" maybe, two sixty five I think, caucasian but thats it. He hit me from behind."

"From behind?" Reid asked.

Banes eyes filled with sudden shock at his suspicious tone, but before he had a chance to answer Morgan released a heavy breath and edged Rossi and Spencer away from the Detective. Herst breathed out as he watched the remaining BAU team move away to discuss the new developments.

Damon used the temporary solitude to his advantage, he leaned down and pretended to look Bane over, "What the hell happened?"

"Hotchner has a hell of a left that's what, but don't worry makes it look good huh?"

"I guess, but where are they?"

Bane looked behind him nervously and whispered back, "I got them to the room."

Damon began to regret that he pulled another person in. He had plans and needed everything to go the way he wanted it, but he knew he couldn't accomplish it without help. He swallowed to hold back his anger and took a breath for control. As he peered down to the Detective he spoke through his clenched teeth, "I didn't want them together yet." He let out a curse as he straightened up, "Damn it."

He looked around but wasn't worried about the sudden stares he got as the situation called for his type of reaction.

He looked back down to Bane who almost cowered at his glare. The seated man shrugged, "I'm sorry I thought that's what you wanted."

Damon's brow furrowed and he shook his head in frustration. "If they're together without us there to monitor and enforce the rules it just gives them more time to-." He stopped abruptly as his eyes landed on Morgan who paced and spoke quickly into his phone.

As the actions that needed to be made crossed his mind he fought the smile that wanted to appear, "I have an idea."

He then put on the best concerned face he could and trotted over to the remaining BAU Agents, "Guys what about Prentiss?"

Reid's head shot up, "Oh right! If he's at his end game she's a sure target being alone. Especially injured and unarmed." He fumbled with his phone in front of him, "I'll call her room."

Herst nodded as he looked over to Reid, "She mentioned taking some pain killers to try and sleep. She may not respond."

He ignored the same curious look the genius had given him from before, and made eye contact with Morgan, "We could get some uniforms over there to check on her just to be sure."

"Yeah, but I'd rather go see for myself."

"I'll go with you."

Morgan threw his hand out and moved to the exit, "Whatever let's go then."

Damon held his excitement to a controlled smile and forced his brow to narrow in a serious manner as the two headed out.

Morgan drove with purpose and Damon could see the worry he tried to hide in his eyes. Neither of them spoke and he was fine with that. It gave him time to really plan.

He almost could not keep up with Derek as he sprinted into the Hotel and ignored the elevator to make faster progress up the stairs.

When they reached the floor Morgan unholstered his gun and Damon followed his lead. He suddenly stopped and put his hand back on Herst's chest to halt him.

"Shit, you walked her up right?"

"Yeah why?"

"Tell me you happen to have the room key."

"Actually, I do."

Morgan nodded and then continued down the hall to the designated room. The two men straddle either side of the door and Morgan knocked forcefully and shouted Emily's name. When there was no immediate answer or signs that anyone was in the room he glanced back to Damon and signaled for him to open the door. Damon obliged and let Morgan storm in to be the first to clear the space. As they moved he made sure he was a step behind him and waited patiently until he holstered his weapon again.

"Damn it she's not here." He sighed, "What the fuck is going on?" Derek cursed as he ran another frustrated hand over his head.

"I don't know," Damon responded with little compassion in his voice.

He took in Morgan's glare without flinching and advanced on him when he turned away.

"But let's find out," he said crudely as he brought the butt of his gun across the back of Derek's head.

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><p><em>Could there really be anymore twists? <em>Stay tuned...<em>_

_I'll hope to get another chapter up before the weekend but I'm heading out of town, so if everything goes smooth..:)_

_As always I love feedback, like or have a comment please don't hesitate!_


	6. Switching Sides

_Happy New Year!_

_The encouragement really keeps me going so thank you! I hope the story still has your attention!_

_So here are two chapters for being so patient with me! This one is short but the next is longer..._

_Happy reading! _

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><p>Switching Sides<p>

Detective Karl Bane followed closely behind the blonde but gave her enough space not to feel like he was crowding her. He listened to the two Agents speak about the bodies they had just looked at.

He was about to interject his opinion when his phone stole his attention away from the conversation. When he saw Herst name pop up he knew the seed was planted and the game was about to unfold. He was not entirely clued into the game but was intrigued by what Herst had told him.

At what point he had decided to switch sides he could not exactly place. He found himself bored and tired with his life, his job and the miserable people he came in contact with daily. When the murders began he found himself more intrigued with who this person was and that he actually was rooting for him. He should have been scared of this revelation but it was the first time in years he felt an excitement for something. When the agent was injured and the Bureau pulled the BAU from working the case he jumped at the chance to learn more about the man.

He and Agent Herst had been casual friends that hung out at local bars and one night of drinking led to Damon admitting to him his dark secret. Herst loved the attention and to see things from both sides gave him an extreme advantage. He was insulted that the BAU gave up the case after one of their own went down. Karl was hesitant at first to play along but he wanted to see Damon succeed and to have his own name along side the ultimate UnSub.

As he replaced his phone in his pocket he surveyed the area for witnesses and then back to the two agents. He had quite a task of over powering them. He knew he had an advantage over the blonde but they were both armed and he had to get them separate to be successful. Karl saw his window of opportunity when Aaron excused himself briefly to call in to the field office. He watched him move around the SUV and away a few paces.

He moved in closer to JJ and as she reached to open the passenger door he pressed his gun roughly into her back.

"Don't say a word or move. Do what I say and you might just live a little while longer."

He could feel her breath increase and her eyes shot through the windows to her boss who still had his back to them.

He smiled as he reached over and unholstered her gun and tucked it behind his back.

"Now you're going to get in and have a seat."

She slowly obliged without a word but kept her eyes on him. He pulled his cuffs with one hand and nudged them to her, "Put them on after you snake it though the doors pull handle." As she followed his orders he kept his eyes moving from her to Hotch. He began to feel a slight panic as he saw the man beginning to turn back towards them.

"What do you think you're doing?"

The question caught him off guard and he looked to the blonde, "shut up! Say another word and I'll just shoot him right here."

Those words snapped her mouth shut and she once again looked over to Hotch.

With her secured and sure she wasn't going anywhere he slammed the door and made his way around to the other side and paused so his timing to the back door was the same as Hotch's.

As the man approached he called out, "everything okay?"

Aaron squinted his eyes at him, "just checking in. You ready?"

"Yup."

As Hotch opened the driver's side door Karl pretended to open his door. Before the Unit Chief could get in Bane quickly threw his hand forward and grabbed his head and slammed it into the door frame. The action caused Aaron to reel backwards and stumble. As he came in for another strike Karl was thrown off when Hotch blocked his blow and returned one of his own. Bane had expected a fight and had hoped to quickly subdue him but as they exchanged blows he scrambled to rethink his tactics.

The only thing he had on his side was the surprise and initial attack. In a quick move he was able to pin Aaron on the ground and in one swift swing sent the man into unconsciousness.

Karl let out a deep breath at the final resolution and remembered where they were and looked around but relaxed slightly when he saw that no one witnessed what had occurred. He rubbed his sore face after he pulled the limp body into the back of the SUV. He swiftly removed his tie and covered his eyes and restrained Aaron's hands behind his back before he got into he drivers seat.

He looked over to JJ who just continued to stare at him unsure what was about to happen.

As the adrenaline began to leave his body he felt the anger bubble up at the realization that Herst left him with the difficult tasks. He ran his hand over his jaw and inserted the key into the ignition and turned the car over. He was about to put the car into drive when JJ's voice once again pulled his thoughts from himself.

"Where are you taking us?"

"Thanks for reminding me." He said as he balled his fist and let it connect violently with her face. When her head fell he moved it back so to any cars passing it looked like she was asleep. He knew as they drew near the house he'd have to blind fold her as well in case she came to.

Timing was everything and he was on the clock. He shook his head and pulled the car out to get to the house quickly and get back to the office to make an appearance.

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><p><em>Like? Love to know!<em>


	7. Playing Both Sides

_Happy New Year!_

_Thank you for reading!_

_Happy Reading and if you get a chance I love to hear all thoughts!_

* * *

><p>Playing Both Sides<p>

As Derek's mind rose from the dark oblivious state it had recently occupied he found his first focus to be on the lack of control he had of his extremities. His arms were linked behind him and his ankles bound by tape. He turned his attention to just being able to open his eyes, and they reluctantly opened only to be shut immediately when the light of the room caused the pain in his head to intensify.

After several attempts he found control and achieved the simple goal. He made a move to roll and take in his environment when a voice shook him back to what had happened.

"It's about time Morgan. I didn't think you'd wake, and it was beginning to mess with my plans."

Derek shifted his eyes to focus on the man leering over him.

"What the hell man?"

"Oh let's save the questions. We really need to get going."

Herst lowered himself and released the tape on his ankles and began to force him to a standing position.

Derek tried to resist against Damon's strong grip, but had the disadvantage. It didn't stop him from speaking and turned his head back to make eye contact. "You know it won't take them long to realize that something is up when we don't return."

He jerked Morgan back and spun him around to face him, "Agent Morgan I suggest you just shut up." Then with a more aggressive push he moved the two of them towards the door of the hotel room.

Before he opened the door he stopped their movement and brought his head close to Morgan's ear and gave his orders with venom in each word.

"We are going down, you are in my custody, and don't think if you try to say a word I won't add to her agony sooner than later." As he finished his threat he brought his arm around to the front of them. In his hand was his phone and on the screen was a picture of Emily laying unconscious on an unknown floor.

Morgan's stomach clenched as he took in the picture and tried to play out all the scenarios that could occur and found himself paralyzed to do what he was told to. He relaxed slightly so the cuffs did not dig into his wrists any more, he knew he would find his chance to fight back but realized it was not right then.

Derek was shocked that the hotel was actually empty except the staff at the front desk but as they moved Herst threw his credentials up and no one said a word. It took all he had to not protest and stop the progress of Herst's actions but the images of Emily held his voice hostage.

As they reached his car Damon roughly threw Derek into the back seat. He looked around quickly and when satisfied no one was around he pulled the tape back out and bound Derek's legs again. Then placed one over his eyes and pressed his head down, "stay down," he warned.

As the car moved Derek contemplated what to do he just wasn't sure if Damon was bluffing, but Emily was missing and he was the last person she was with. He should have listened to his gut, the events felt wrong, and Reid's questioning of everything that Herst said rang clearly. It wasn't normally an option for their UnSub to be literally under their noses, and Damon had used that to his advantage. What he wanted with them was unclear, their profile needed an overhaul. He knew Damon Herst would need a partner to accomplish getting the team and he thought of who got Hotch and JJ. He just didn't know who that could be, and hoped Rossi and Reid could get more out of Bane.

As the thoughts ran through his head he tried to adjust himself and speak to his captor, "You know that it won't take long for Reid and Rossi to figure you out."

"By then it won't matter, and they will contributing to it all anyway," Herst growled from in front of him. Derek fell forward slightly as the cars movement suddenly stopped. They had not traveled very far and Derek tried to understand what was happening. He heard the driver door open and close then a cold draft hit him as the door near his head was opened.

Damon's voice was by his ear again, "You're going to do me a favor." He then heard a beeping of a phone before Herst's voice was back, "When Rossi answers you're going to tell him you are taking Agent Prentiss to Urgent Care and try to get back as soon as possible to help find your other colleagues."

"They'll only buy it for so long, your time at playing both sides will run out."

"That's when it gets fun." He laughed and then pressed the phone against Morgan's ear.

The senior profiler answered quickly and impatience was in his voice, "Rossi."

"Hey, its Morgan."

"Is Emily okay?"

Morgan paused briefly but began to speak when he felt a muzzle of a gun pressed against his temple.

"She's not doing well, I'm going to run her to an Urgent Care. She's running a high fever and acting disoriented, like she's not here." Bane pressed the gun deeper into his temple, he took in the ache but he had to take the chance that Rossi might pick up on anything.

There was a pause on the other end but then Dave answered with a slight sense of irritation, "All right, take care of her. Maybe work with Garcia to get something on Hotch and JJ. We're coming up blank here. Bane isn't much help."

"Okay, keep on Detective Bane-" Morgan felt his head get knocked to the side when Damon pushed away from him and cut the conversation off.

"Nice try Derek, we're done." The door was slammed shut and the SUV rocked again as Damon moved to the front. Before he knew it they began to drive, but to where he had no clue. He hoped it was to the missing team, at least then they could collaborate how to overrun this rouge agent.

* * *

><p>Aaron found himself feeling out his surrounding by increasing his focus on the one sense that was not restricted. He tuned his ears to get any clue to what was around him. He heard the sound of the road flying past underneath him and it drowned out any other sounds that might give him any new information.<p>

A slow pound that hovered at the base of his neck surfaced and slammed him full force. The throbbing stole his concentration to remember the events that led him to a bound and blindfolded in what he assumed was the back of the FBI issued SUV.

He fought the slow panic that began to tighten in his chest and searched for an ounce of clarity. The sudden attack had thrown him off even though he went on alert after the conversation he had with Prentiss. He couldn't imagine how Bane had gained an upper hand with the two of them.

The SUV coming to a halt was enough for Aaron to refocus and try and take in what was happening or at least try and see if JJ was okay. He had not heard any sound that resembled her. He was drug out by his feet and slid down and could not stop his body and head hitting the ground with an intense force. Before he could fully acknowledge the pain the impact caused he was forced to his feet and pushed forward. He stumbled slightly but did not walk far before a door was opened and he was led inside. He was pushed against a wall and forced to a seated position.

As Bane left he turned his attention to the other body that occupied the room. All he could see was the dark silk over his eyes and yet he strained to see. He was about to speak when the door opened again and another person entered. A rustle of bodies moved only feet from him and he sat still to take in what was going on. The door was slammed again and he could not fight his bodies reaction to the start as it jumped.

His heart raced and he worked to regain his breath. After moments of silence a weak voice whispered into the dark air.

"Hotch?"

"Yeah. JJ are you okay?"

"Besides the massive headache the bastard inflicted yeah. You?"

"Yeah."

The room was silent again and Aaron was still unsure of the other presence that was in the room, but could tell it wasn't moving or read as a threat. He began to twist his body to get his arms in front of himself so he could remove his blind fold.

After an exhausting effort he found success and brought his hands up to remove the tie that was tight against his eyes.

As he pulled the material off he squinted as his eyes adjusted to the dim light that filled the room. His eyes went immediately to JJ who was in front of him. She was pressed tightly against the wall. She sat still but her head was tilted to the side as she listened to what was happening in the room. He realized he had not warned her what he was doing and the look of fear on her face had kept her from speaking.

"JJ, it's okay. I got the blind fold-" he caught himself mid sentence when the unmoving form of Emily caught his eye. She lay slouched against the far wall. Her head and shoulder propped by the wall and the rest of her lay haphazardly across the floor. The sling that once held her left arm in place was missing and her arm lay awkwardly to her side.

He watched her carefully and felt his breath return when he saw that her chest rose and fell. It was slight but enough to know she was breathing.

"Hotch?"

"Sorry," he said and moved over to the blonde and took her blind fold off. She gave him a small smile but it fell as she looked over to the brunette.

"Oh God, Emily! Is she okay?"

"I don't know." He answered as he moved to her and checked her pulse. "I don't know what happened," he repeated as he looked her over. He couldn't see any sign of head trauma, but still was not sure. He thought it best not to move her but her angle against the wall did not look right. He gently stabilized her neck and slide her down until she was flat on the ground.

He continued to scan her for any evidence that would tell him what had happened. He slowly brought his hand up to see what damage was done to her shoulder. The arrow had fractured her clavicle and he was concerned to what state it was in now.

"What do we do?" JJ asked as she worked frantically to get her hands out from behind her.

He looked around and for the first time took in their surroundings. There was a single bulb in the center of the ceiling that illuminated the space. The room was relatively small and had no windows and the only exit was a handless door. He could tell that it wasn't the same room from the videos and wondered if it was more like a holding cell. His eyes landed on the ties and cloth that were used as the blind folds.

"We need a sling. I was going to use my shirt but I won't be able to get it off with the cuffs on. Those will have to do." He looked over to her, "Can you hand me the ties?"

"What? Oh yeah." She said as she snatched them from the ground and moved to get next to him.

Aaron paused over the unconscious agent and hesitated to move her arm.

"What's wrong?"

"This is going to be painful," he whispered as he gently palpitated over the injury site. He cocked his head to JJ, "If the fracture is worse, which I think it is, she's going to be in more pain than she was before."

"So what do we do?"

"I think the only thing we can do is immobilize it and hope it helps."

JJ did not verbally answer and sighed as she looked over Emily. She stared at her face willing her to come to. Her unknown state and their new circumstance was more than unnerving. She was about to stand to pace some of her nervous energy when Emily began to move.

Her brow narrowed and a low whimper became slightly louder as it rattled in her throat. As she began to stir more her eyes began to slowly flutter open. Aaron remained still to not startle her but was unsuccessful and she jumped slightly when her eyes focused and came into contact with his. The jarring action clearly caused pain and she could not hold back a cry and her uninjured arm flew across to hold herself until the intensity of the wave subsided.

Gradually her breathing settled and Aaron moved back into her eye line.

"Emily, it's okay." He tried to soothe her and gain contact with her frantic eyes as they searched above her.

She looked passed him and then she shut her eyes again as if to regain some control of herself. He watched small tears that made their escape and glistened down her colorless cheeks. They were miniscule rouge tells of the agony her injury was causing.

"Can you move at all?"

At that question she reopened her eyes and with the slightest movement let her head sway and answered a silent no.

"Okay, it's going to be okay."

He began to wonder how to get her arm in position. He knew no matter what he did it was going to cause pain but if they were to have a chance to get away she won't be able to move in any efficient way without her arm held in place.

He didn't take his eyes from Emily as he picked up the ties, "I'm going to tell you everything I'm doing. I'll try to move slow."

She only moved her head to acknowledge his words.

He folded the material to the best makeshift sling he could and placed it across her chest. "I'm going to move your arm now."

She closed her eyes and brought her legs up in anticipation for the pain. As he grabbed her wrist he tried to support her elbow at the same time but his bound hands reduced his reach.

"JJ will you help stabilize?"

She nodded and knelt down next to them and placed her hands on her upper arm and elbow. She looked to Emily to give her silent strength but she still had her eyes shut tight.

Aaron nodded to JJ, "okay."

As they moved Emily's eyes shot open and were filled with agony and pain. All she could do was bite her lip to hold back the cry that wanted to escape.

"I'm sorry, " Hotch apologized as he stopped for her regain a part of herself. A sudden rush of guilt hit him and he had to look away to not expose himself.

"You let me know when your ready to continue." He said as he looked back down to her.

She took in a few shallow breaths and in a shaky voice spoke, "ok, do it."

Hotch finished tying the sling behind her neck and looked at the tie on the ground. "We need to sit you up." He looked from the brunette to JJ. He didn't need to say a word as JJ waited for what she needed to do to help.

"Stabilize her neck I'll get under her right side."

In slow but efficient action they successfully got Emily seated against the wall. When they released their grips she slouched her weight to the support behind her. As Emily took in her new position her face became more pale and her eyes began to glaze in an unfocused state. Aaron's concern rose as he could see that the pain was sending her to the edge, and her body wanted to shut down.

"Breathe Emily, just breathe," he tried to console as to not let the screaming pain overtake her.

As she began to calm and focus a little better a sudden voice from behind took them by surprise.

"Now this is why I didn't want you guys in the same room yet."

Herst stood in the doorway with a gun facing the three profilers.

His brow furrowed and he directed his gun towards Aaron, "Move away from her."

Then repeated the action to JJ, "you too. Separate."

The two hesitated but could see the serious nature and moved a few paces back.

He redirected himself to Emily but spoke to all of them, "In no time you began the game without knowing the rules." He shook his head, "I'll just have to make adjustments."

He gave a stern look to Emily, "get up Agent Prentiss." When she didn't respond right away his voice rose and held a fierce venom, "NOW!"

She took in a shaky breath to prepare herself and slowly used the wall to inch herself to her feet. She gripped the wall for support as her rebellious body wanted to refuse her actions. She tried to stand as tall as she could and stared back to the man holding them hostage.

He smiled at the response he got and continued to speak with arrogance, "You're only as strong as your weakest link. And by the looks of it I think none of you will make it very far with this weak link."

"What the hell are you saying?" JJ spat at him.

He looked from JJ and back to Emily, "I'm saying this won't be much fun to watch if its over too fast." He shook his head and looked to Emily with disappointment, "I had high hopes when you strolled in after taking an arrow like you did. But its clear that you won't make it far, so come on."

No one in the room moved, and Herst's anger became apparent as he moved forward towards Prentiss.

"LET'S GO!" Emily jumped slightly at the volume of his voice, and began to stumble forward at his demand but before she got far JJ jumped in front of her to hold her back.

"No, I'll go."

"Jennifer that is so valiant of you but you have to understand the rules and trust me when you learn them you don't want her on your team."

"Why don't you let us decide that?" Aaron spoke up as he began to move towards him.

Herst patience began to wain and he directed his gun to the Unit Chief, "No, because they are my rules. Now both of you back up or I'll just put her out of her misery right now. I was just trying to spare you, plus the mess it would make in this room."

JJ stood back only slightly when she felt Emily's hand on her shoulder. She turned her head but did not take her eyes of Damon.

"JJ, don't its fine."

"No, it's not. You're not going. I won't let you, not without a fight."

"If it means you have more time then it is. He may be bluffing," she whispered.

"I don't trust it. I won't just let him take you out and shoot you like a dog."

"As entertaining and heartwarming as this is we are on a clock here. And this is not up for debate."

Herst took a step forward and as he did the other two profilers mirrored his move and created a shield around Emily.

His eyes grew darker and the anger he exuded increased. In a swift moved he backhanded JJ and the action send her flying into the wall. Stunned she could not move at first and before Aaron could react Damon had Emily in his grasps with the gun to her head.

"Now this is not how I wanted it to happen but you all push me too far."

"You want control I understand that, but what is it you're doing?" Aaron asked as he put his cuffed hands up to gain Damon's attention. "You want us to play your game. Tell us the rules, let us decide if Emily is a weak link. Isn't that what you're trying to prove that you're the better profiler?"

"Don't try to profile me right now Agent Hotchner. It won't do you any good, and I make all the final decisions and this one is made. Trust me, you will thank me."

He moved backwards out the door with Emily tight in his grip. JJ rose and stood on shaky legs and tried to move again to stop Herst and before the door slammed shut Aaron lunged towards it. He only succeeded in ramming himself into the wooden barrier. The agents remained rooted in their spots and the room became still as they listened for anything beyond their cell. The intense silence was shattered by the cracks of gunfire that echoed and rocked the small room.

"NO!" JJ screamed as she threw herself against the door and pounded in vain.

Aaron grabbed her by the shoulders to console her as she sank in deep sobs to the ground. He tried to hold strong but the gut wrenching feeling that over took him was almost too much. He wanted to believe it was a bluff but he didn't even trust his own instincts now, Emily might be dead because he made the decision to bring her back.

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><p><em>So? What could Damon be up to?<em>


	8. Doubt

_Thank you for reading! As I always say thank you in these author notes for the reviews favs and alerts I don't think the words do justice to the motivation it gives me. So sincerely thank you!_

_I wanted this next chapter to be Reid and Rossi and what's happening with Morgan but it was not cooperating so I went with the muse. I hope you like it!_

_Happy reading!_

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><p>Doubt<p>

The lights flashed like fireworks behind her eyes as she squeezed the lids so tight it almost began to hurt. The expected pain never came but the echo of the gun was clear. Emily felt her breath catch as his rough hand squeezed the back of her neck. She opened her eyes to only close them in disgust when his hot breath stung her ear.

"The game has begun." He half laughed as he moved his head away but did not loosen his grip.

Emily tried to see into his face but he pushed her downward and forward, and the pressure on her neck and the pain in her arm held her captive to anything he demanded. All she knew was she was being led across a grassy lawn. The path in front of her began to blur with spots and moments of darkness and she continued to struggle not to lose her hold on consciousness. He had not killed her right then for a reason and she had to find a trace of clarity to know why.

When they reached a small set of stairs she stumbled over herself as she found her motor control began to wain with the rest of her body as it shut down. It only resulted in an annoyed grunt from Damon.

He tightened his grip and moved the two of them up the remaining stairs then pinned her against the wall and used his free hand to to open the door. This gave Emily a chance to try and look around but the dark night only gave her a curtain of black beyond the small cone of light that came from the tiny bulb on the porch.

The wave of warmth that hit her face as they broke the frame of the door soothed her for a moment, but the emptiness of the house and its eerie air broke any sense of calm. She could not make out anything remarkable as they moved and he continued to press her forward into the dark house that seemed to snake on forever. They finally came to a halt at the end of a narrow hallway.

He opened the door in front of them and before they entered Emily saw stairs to the right that lead to what she could only assume to be a second story. Before she could focus on it he moved them through the doorway. He flung a light on and Emily squinted as it assaulted her eyes and tried to see what lay ahead. She took in a small breath as she saw more stairs to have to decent, and with the way Damon jerked her around she could only prepare apart of her for what seemed an inevitable fall. She focused on not tripping, and was relieved when she managed to complete the small task. Her relief fled as he released his grip and her uncooperative body gave out and she fell to her knees. She was unable to catch herself fully and as the pain rocket through her she tried to bite down the cry that escaped.

His impatience to achieve his goal became apparent as he once again replaced his grip and shoved her forward. As they moved Emily tried to see the space for what it was. It was void of anything but a small table in the middle, and a door that filled the space of one of the walls and looked like it would slide open, but large locks kept it sealed. The walls were stone and the warmth of the house refused to be found in the cold unforgiving room. Against the furthest wall was a single shackle a quarter of the way up the wall. That was where Damon led her and halted their progress.

Upon reaching it he spun her against the rough stone and as she hit the air that pushed out stole a whimper with it. She could no longer refuse the tears that welled up in her eyes from the agonizing pain that ripped through her. He smiled viscously at her as he forced her arm into the cuff and locked it. He gazed for a moment at his handiwork and then stepped back.

She examined him and tried to hold herself up to not show him how weak she really was. She quickly realized that the angle and the height of the shackle would not allow her to do anything but hang, and she already had began to feel the pull on her arm muscles from her legs wanting to give out. It took everything she had not to pass out from the pain.

"What do think you're accomplishing?" She forced out as he stared at her.

"You really don't remember me do you?"

"Should I?" She continued to focus as her legs gave way and she began to lose the battle. She pressed herself against the wall for support and waited for Damon to answer her.

"I shouldn't expect anything less. Dr. Reid was the only one to acknowledge me."

Emily rolled her eyes up to him, "not all of us have an eidetic memory."

He disregarded the comment and continued, "let me refresh it for you then. Seven years ago Indianapolis."

She raised her eyebrows for him to enlighten her more.

"I was fresh out of the Academy and ready to learn. The BAU was called in. When you all strolled in with all your confidence and knowledge, I knew at that point I wanted to be apart of that team."

Emily searched her memory for when they were in Indiana for what case and more specifically him, but her mind was covered in a thick fog. She knew it didn't really matter he was beyond an apology if seven years later he was hatching a revenge plan.

He began to pace in front of her and his eyes were lost in his distant memory. "I had that case solved, but did any of you care to hear what I had to say. I was your grunt, getting coffee, making phone calls. No one gave a shit about what I thought."

"If you had something to contribute I'm sure-"

"Shut up!" He growled as he lunged towards her and halted inches from her face.

Emily's mouth sealed at his tone and sudden closeness.

"I was disregarded, but it doesn't matter now. What does is I got you all here and I'll be the one to solve these murders. I'll have captured the one responsible."

"Whose that?" She asked between struggled breathes.

He brought his hand to her neck and squeezed mockingly as he spoke through his clenched teeth, "Why would you care, you'll be dead."

She could only stare at him afraid that any response she gave might only bring her end sooner. He released her and began to leave but turned abruptly and let out a low menacing laugh, "How can I forget to let you know your rules."

He smirked as he pointed to a white line she had not previously noticed when he brought her in. "The first person through that door cannot cross that line. If they do, you die as does the person breaking the rule."

He moved next to the table and began to arrange the keys on it, "If for some reason the right person makes it across only one of these keys on the table unlocks you. Get it wrong you die, also the person attempting the fruitless rescue."

"The last and my personal favorite is that you cannot give any hints or insight to the rules. You do and they die then so do you."

"Sounds fair," she muttered under her breath.

"What was that?"

She bit her lip and turned her face up towards him but then let it drop to not push him further.

"That's what I thought."

After he slammed the door she allowed herself to sink into the unavoidable and torturous position. For the sake of the others she found herself secretly hoping that no one came crashing through.

* * *

><p>The room felt like it began to fall inward and suffocate her. JJ had not allowed herself to unfold from the ball she held herself in, but she knew this was not the time to fall apart. The reality of what had happened, more what she imagined had happened, held her captive.<p>

In a small effort of strength she rose her head finally and caught the stare of Aaron who had not taken his eyes off her. She wiped her tears and took in a deep breath to release any lasting doubt.

"You okay?" He asked with caution.

"Are you?" She replied cooly.

Aaron blinked slowly and his deep scowl drew tighter as he continued to stare. He didn't make a sound at first as he rose from his squatted position.

"If we have any chance of surviving we need to rethink the profile."

"What?" She asked in disbelief.

"JJ, I know what your thinking, but there is nothing that we can do at this point." He paused and looked back over to the blonde that began to stand. He tried to swallow his guilt and spoke softly. "I'm sorry, I should have done something sooner-"

JJ jumped in before he could finish, "we both could have done something sooner. I just don't see how the profile will help get us out of this, or bring Emily back."

As she spoke the last few words her voice trailed off and she moved to distance herself from the door.

Hotch watched the internal struggle she was dealing with but needed her to just pretend that they had a chance to get out.

He tried again to grasp control of their situation, "we know what he wants."

"And what's that?"

"For us to fail. What changed in the murders?"

She let her head drop in defeat and her eyes searched as she thought back to the case, "his method became more sophisticated and his victims more specific."

"Okay what else?"

"Umm, the role of law enforcement became intertwined in his game."

"Exactly, so he wants us to play his game. To try and save each other from unrealistic challenges. That's why I think he wouldn't just shoot Prentiss."

"You think its a mind game?"

"Makes sense. What thrill would he get from an execution style murder?"

"Do you really believe that?"

"I have to."

She gave him a weak smile and whispered a response that was more to herself, "I hope you're right."

"So do we have a plan?" She asked and leaned against the wall before she sank back down to a seated position.

"Try and stay together."

"What if he splits us up?"

"Then we work to survive and get back together. He mentioned teams, so I don't think he'll split us up but until he actually gives us the rules we can only wait."

Before any more words could be spoken a low hiss began to fill the room. The two looked around to see the air above them begin to fill with a gas. There was no where to go and they covered their mouths and held their breath as long as they could. The effort was useless as the gas overtook them and they fell to the ground.

* * *

><p>A sharp striking slap rocked JJ's head to the side and brought her abruptly to the present. Her head felt like rocks were rolling around and slamming into her brain. Before she could try and grasp the ache her stomach flipped from the nausea that came on as fast as the pounding in her head.<p>

She felt his presence in front of her but fought to open her eyes in fear of more pain.

"Let's go. I'm not interested in waiting much longer."

JJ forced her eyes open to look at the man that hovered too close for her comfort. She looked past him to her surroundings and noticed she was no longer in the room she and Hotch previously occupied. She frantically looked around for him but there was barely enough light to see Damon in front of her.

Her heart sank at the prospect that he had split them up. He grabbed her by her arms and forced her into a standing position. She tried to will her uncooperative legs to hold her weight and not buckle. He adjusted her like a rag doll until she could stand on her own with the support of the wall behind her.

"Finally," he huffed as he stepped back. "I'm going to keep this simple for you. You're the only one free to roam. You ultimately decides who lives and who dies."

"What?" She tried to comprehend his words as she still fought to gain a clear mind.

"Have fun." He laughed and then disappeared behind a door she had not seen but heard the bolts lock as he sealed her in.

Her mind spun and she held herself against the wall and fought the nausea, that came on in waves, with deep controlled breathes. She held her head in her hands as and tried to understand her role. She could roam free, and to her that meant there were others there still alive, but who? She feared for Hotch and her thoughts went to Emily. Maybe Hotch was right that it was a mind trick. But where they could be and in what state? There were too many unknowns, and she was not doing anyone any good standing still.

She squinted her eyes into the darkness in front of her afraid at first to step forward; unsure of her own footing and what lay ahead. Tentatively she put one foot in front of the other and kept a hand along the wall to feel for anything that could resemble a door or a way out.

As her hands ran along the wood paneling she thought of the profile, and worried whose fate she would be responsible for. Her stomach turned into a knot at what may lay ahead.

Before she realized how far she traveled she was at a cross roads of stairs and a door. The stairs led up to another level, but she chose against it as she was more interested in getting out then going much deeper into the creepy house.

She reached out and carefully tested the handle of the door and when it gave way she held her breath at what it might do. When nothing happened she released the breath as she slowly pushed the heavy door open. It was the first instance that she had been greeted with light. Her initial view was a set of stairs that led down, and she started to regret her decision but figured any decision she made wasn't really better than the other.

She lowered herself down the steps carefully and kept her back against the wall to have the view above her and below clear.

Her careful nature vanished when her eyes completely adjusted to the light and saw Emily as she hung limply on the wall furthest from her. Her heart leapt that Herst had bluffed at killing her but sank just as fast as she realized her fate now lay in her hand. The worst part of the unknown was how it was up to her, what did she need to do?

She was about to run to her when her gut told her not to. A sudden flash of the night in the woods sprung forward and she halted her movements. She began to look around the room in curiosity. There was nothing that gave her any indication that if she strolled up to her that anything would happen. She felt the concern to get to her well up as she saw her state. The only reason that Emily was somewhat upright was the shackle that was clasped to her wrist. Her knees barely touched the ground and was almost suspended in air from the height of her binds.

JJ took a step forward and saw the line painted across the room, and the table in the middle with keys laid out in a row.

She paused at the line and called out to the unconscious brunette.

She tried to be gentle with her words but she found she couldn't control the panic in her voice and her volume was sharp.

Emily's eyes shot open and she grimaced as she tried to adjust her awkward position. Her eyes searched in confusion in front of herself then landed on JJ.

She stared blankly but then a realization of what was happening hit her. JJ was relieved at first but the words that came out of her mouth threw her back.

"No, go."

"What? Emily, it's me. Tell me what to do so I can get you out."

The brunette closed her eyes and weakly shook her head. Her voice was low and almost a whisper, "you need to go."

"I'm not leaving you. Please tell me what to do." She looked to her right and then to the left and a sudden rush of panic ran through her. She focused on the table. "How do I get to the keys? Emily please."

Emily's voice suddenly became harsh and her dark eyes pierced her, "please trust me." She took in a ragged breath and slightly whimpered at her pain, "go."

JJ froze riveted in her stance. Those words, those simple words cut into her like a knife. Her heart couldn't allow her to walk out of the room and leave her bound to a wall barely holding on. She could never forgive herself for not even trying. She knew that Emily would not want to put her in danger and she must know something she could not divulge. It was the only thing that made any sense. Trust her, she wished it was that simple. She could not deny the pit in her stomach that stemmed from the thought of finding Emily alive, after she thought she was dead, to only leave her in misery. The worst part was not knowing if she could return for another rescue attempt.

Before she convinced her body to turn itself around she moved her head to make sure their eyes connected, "Hang on for me. I'll find a way to come back for you."

She almost saw a subtle laugh come from her but wasn't sure. She did see the weak smile that was her response. As she turned she looked back once more and swore it looked like Emily relaxed to the fact she was left in her confines. JJ only hoped it was the right decision, that might have been her only chance and failed.

All of her doubt welled up as she looked up at her only other option and began to ascend the dark stair case to more of the unknown.

* * *

><p><em>Well, I hope I still have you!<em>

_Next up more of what's up with the rest of the team...hope you stay tuned!_

_Thanks for reading, and please don't hesitate to tell me your thoughts!_


	9. Life and Death

_This is short but if all goes well I should be able to have an update tomorrow._

_Thanks for reading!_

* * *

><p>Life and Death<p>

The room was brightly lit but Reid felt nothing but darkness surround him as the mysterious events continued to unfold. It was enough stress to think that something terrible had happened to JJ and Hotch, and he just wasn't convinced that Morgan and Emily were acting like themselves. He listened intently to Rossi finish the brief conversation with Derek and hung up.

The senior profiler sighed as he pocketed his phone. He didn't like Derek's tone and the abrupt end to the call, it just didn't fit with what he said. He looked over to Reid and saw that his face read the same concerns he had. He cleared his throat, "what's on your mind?"

Spencer looked over to Bane and shook his head, "I'm not sure. There are just a lot of things that don't connect."

"Like what?"

"Well, Emily for one. It's not like her to leave without telling anyone. The way Herst acted when I questioned him. He got pretty defensive, like he knew her better than us."

"Maybe she told Hotch." Rossi said as he picked up her phone and proceeded to check her call history.

He turned the phone to face him, "Last two calls, Garcia and Hotch." He turned it back to himself, "Let's call Garcia and see if she told her anything."

Reid crossed his arms as he watched Dave make the call.

"My dear E tell me you have found JJ and Hotch!" The Analyst half yelled through the phone.

"Garcia its Dave, and no I'm sorry."

Her voice dropped in a sad disappointment, "Oh, why are you calling from Emily's phone?"

"What did the two of you talk about when she called?"

"Uh, are we on speaker?"

Dave shot Reid a look then looked around the room. "Yes," he answered hesitantly.

"Well, maybe not be," she suggested.

He turned away and moved to a corner of the room and pressed the button before putting it to his ear.

"What's going on?"

"Well she had asked me to look into Agent Herst."

His brow narrowed and he felt his heart begin to race a little. He tried to think why Emily had a suspicion of Herst and he looked over to the board but still nothing clicked. He redirected himself back to the conversation with Garcia, "Why did she want you to check him out?"

"She didn't give a reason. She said he was right there so she was being discrete about it."

"What did you find out?"

"Nothing besides an almost too flawless record. He has applied for quite a few transfers and a ridiculous amount of them to the BAU."

"That's interesting," Dave muttered but was not liking the direction the information was going. "Did Prentiss say anything about not feeling well and possibly going back to the hotel?"

There was a pause, and she answered with a questioning tone, "No, she sounded tired but said we were going to conference with Hotch when they got back. Please tell me what's going on."

He covered the phone's speaker and eyed Spencer, "Call Morgan back, get an ETA."

Spencer squinted at him but pulled his phone as he did. Spencer felt the irritation rise as the phone rang but went to voicemail. He tried again and when Derek still didn't answer he just shook head at Rossi as he left a message for him to return the call.

"Garica can you track the GPS and see where Morgan is?"

"Please tell me what's going on!" She begged as she typed frantically on her key board.

"That's what we need to find out."

"His phone is at Main and 33rd."

"What's there?"

"Uhh," she muttered as she continued to type, "a medical center, dentist, pharmacy, lab, and an Urgent Care."

Rossi let out a breath, "okay do me a favor can you check to see if Prentiss has checked in, and keep trying Morgan for me."

"Is Emily okay?"

"Morgan said she was pretty sick and took her to get checked out."

"K, bye." she replied somberly as their connection was broken.

Spencer wasn't convinced and there were too many inconsistent variables.

He saw that Rossi picked up on his doubt, "Not satisfied?"

"No," he answered as he looked over to Bane, who he had noticed checked his phone every few minutes and appeared slightly more agitated.

"You didn't find it odd that Bane said he was attacked from behind, yet all of his injuries are on his face, and I saw bruising and cuts on his hand."

"So let's have a talk with him again."

Spencer shrugged his confirmation and was about to confront the man but paused as Bane rose and reached in and pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. Spencer saw that in his need for the nicotine fix he had left his phone on the table. The profilers watched him make an exit from the building before they moved over to the table. Spencer slowly turned the phone to face him, and as he did it lit up and alerted of a text.

He drew closer to see what it said and felt himself tense when he saw Herst's name and the words that came through clear.

_Players in place, I'm ready for the Genius._

* * *

><p>JJ could barely focus on her steps or movements as her mind flashed images of leaving Emily how she did. She stopped halfway up and fought her urge to run right back down to the room. She didn't know what she was doing and never felt more frustrated and confused than she did at that moment. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the wall. She let out a sigh of frustration then looked back and forth in the darkness. All of her uncertainty was over running her instincts and confidence.<p>

The silence of the house was unnerving, all she could hear was her heart as it beat erratically in her chest. She swallowed and forced her legs to continue her slow pace up the stairs. She tried to listen for any clue to what was ahead but nothing presented itself. When she finally reached the landing at the top her only option was a hallway that led to a closed door.

_Of course _she thought as she took small steps. She kept her head moving to not be surprised by anything that might jump out from the dark shadows. The hall seemed endless and each step did not appear to close the gap.

It was more than clear that anything she would encounter was not going to be easy or obvious. She hesitated when she finally reached the dead end, and leaned in to listen for any sounds on the other side. There was only a faint rustle but she could not place it as anything significant.

She slowly placed her hand on the knob and began to turn. Before she got far a frantic yell from the other side kept her from finishing the revolution. She released the round metal and stepped back. Her stomach clenched as she recognized the voice.

"Derek?" She asked through the door. If he was here did Herst have the whole team? Her mind swirled at the possibility and what that meant for her. Would everyones life rest on her shoulders? She tried to control the rush of panic that crashed into her.

"JJ?" His voice called back.

"Yeah its me," she answered in a shaky voice. "Are you okay?"

"I'm okay. Don't open the door."

"Why? Tell me what's going on."

"I can't JJ just trust me."

She placed her head against the door in defeat. There was it was again, it all lay in her hands but she didn't know what the right thing to do was.

"How can I help you if you don't tell me anything?" She pleaded to him, in hopes he could give her anything.

There was a brief silence before Morgan's voice was back, "I can't tell you what's going on in here but-" then his voice trailed off.

She held herself in anticipation for what he was going to divulge, hopefully a hint to how she could help him. She in no way had prepared herself for the words that slapped her hard.

"JJ it's your fault Emily almost died."

She stepped back shocked by his words but more confused at why he said them.

"Did you hear me?" He called back through the door.

She shot back harshly and tried to hide the pain they caused, "Yeah I heard you! What's your point?"

"That is exactly my _point_."

She stared at the dark wood in front of her in confusion and hurt. Then it hit her that he was trying to tell her what he was facing.

"Derek I'm not sure I understand. What does Emily getting shot with an arrow have to you and me not coming in?"

"You tell me."

It had to be simple. It was obvious that the rules that he had given Emily and Derek were not to tell her any of them. She had to make a blind decision, but here Derek was trying to tell her without breaking his rules. She thought about the events that led to Emily getting struck by the arrow. She had tripped on a line that released it. The circumstances probably were similar since Derek brought it up. It only made sense that if she opened the door a similar fate would be held by Derek.

If that was the case she was stuck in indecision again. She pressed her forehead against the door and let it take her weight. She stared down to the ground and placed a hand on the door. She did not want to turn away again, and she knew that this was what Herst wanted. She just had to find a way around it, she was not going to give up, but the doubt to find success had become heavy and thick. She fought to not let the emotions of her failure win but Derek's voice broke into her self induced misery.

"JJ are you still there?"

She slightly lifted her head and spoke into the door, "Yeah."

"I think I've got something."

She was about to respond when she began to hear a scrapping noise and what sounded like breathing. As she turned her attention to it she realized it was not breathing but more of a sniffing. Her panic of what was coming rose as the scrapping and tapping grew louder. It moved with purpose up the stairs, and she turned around to try and face it.

"Something's coming Derek!" She called behind her. Her only option to get away from it was through the door behind her. If she did she would kill Derek, if she didn't she would most likely not survive the attack of what was headed towards her.

She looked frantically around for anything she could use as a weapon, but there was nothing but the walls and the booby trapped door behind her.

"JJ stay calm!" He called through and a rattling noise echoed behind his voice.

She closed her eyes at his words but the shaking that had begin in her hands quickly spread throughout her body. When she opened them again her eyes landed on the beast that had stopped at the top of the stairs. She did not take her eyes from it and tried to get into a defensive stance as it began to growl.

She could not take her eyes of its sharp and menacing teeth as they were exposed and warned her of what was coming.

"Dog!" She called out urgently behind her.

"What?"

"DOG!" She screamed again as she saw it begin to bound towards her.

* * *

><p><em>That silly little review button is a great way to let me know if you like, dislike,or just have a comment for me! I appreciate all feedback!<em>

_Thank you again for reading!_


	10. Locks and Bolts

_Thank you for the comments and encouragement! I hope you continue to enjoy the story! Here's a long one for you. I was going to break it up but it didn't quite work that way._

_Happy reading and if you get a chance I'd love to hear your thought_s!

* * *

><p>Locks and Bolts<p>

Aaron looked past the form of the man that was in front of him to the narrow tunnel that led to an unknown destination. It was dimly lit and by the surroundings it was obvious they were underground.

He tried to clear the haze that clouded his mind to try and pull a profile together. He cursed to himself to think that there was any chance that Herst would have kept him and JJ together. He realized that the mind game was more important than any physical obstacle they would encounter.

He pulled gently on the cuffs that attached him to a rung of a ladder. His eyes continued to roam the space and looked up. He followed the ladder up to a small opened hatch. His only clue to the time of day was the tiniest amount of moon light that filtered down.

When he looked back to Damon he saw that he had stopped texting on his phone and was now staring down to him with a wide smile plastered across his face.

"Everything is set."

"What exactly are you trying to accomplish?"

The smile didn't leave his face as he knelt down to Aaron's level and adjusted his weight as he sat back on his feet. He didn't speak right away and just stared into the Unit Chief's eyes. Hotch didn't let his own eyes waiver even though he was acutely aware that Herst had the control. But there was no way he would show an ounce of doubt or fear.

Damon let out a small laugh as he rose again, "You really have no idea the asset I would be to the team."

Aaron held back his own laugh that wanted to escape. "You realize that won't happen now."

"All of this doubt. With this tragedy they'll have to rebuild a new team. Besides who do you think will bring in the mad man that caused all of this?"

Aaron raised his brow in curiosity but let it return to his scowl just as fast. "And whose that?"

"Karl Bane. The man is pretty messed up. I mean can you believe he has a journal describing everything that he had planned for his victims?"

As he listened to the man rant Hotch became curious to the screen he kept looking at as he spoke.

Damon then looked up and grinned as if pleased with himself, "I mean look at how he inserted himself into the investigation like he did."

Aaron's usually sharp mind was still uncooperative and he fought to place this man's original stressor and what it had to do with the team. Herst had created quite an elaborate plan but the purpose escaped him. It was at that point he realized the concussion and lingering effects of the gas were holding him back. The best he could do was listen and try and focus in hopes he'd be able to pick up something useful.

"I was a little worried at first how fast you all packed up and fell apart when Prentiss went down." He shifted slightly then made eye contact with Aaron. "Then the Bureau sends the hack team to try and clean up."

"So it was you from the beginning? You started the murders to draw us in."

"Actually no, Travis Carter was responsible for starting it all. But don't worry he's been taken care of. Now you want to talk about a sick man. I mean look at this place!" He exclaimed as he raised his arms to show off the surroundings. "Everyone should be thanking me that I stopped him."

"You let innocent people die so you could further your career."

"They were hookers and transients, and it originally wasn't my intent."

"They were human beings."

"Whatever," he said quickly and waved his hands before he turned his back.

"I'm done with-" He paused mid sentence as he became distracted by the device he clutched tightly in his hand. "Oh here we go!"

He looked back over to Aaron and the enthusiasm gleamed in his eyes. "So far the rules have been followed."

He laughed again and knelt back down and turned his screen so Hotch could see what he was watching.

His was unsure of his mixed reaction. One, that JJ was alive, but the other to what she was doing. She had her head against a door and appeared to be speaking. To who he wasn't sure and his stomach dropped as she turned and he could see she was yelling out in a panic. He couldn't see the danger that she faced and the helpless feeling tore at him.

"This is about to get really good!" Damon yelled out in excitement as he jumped up.

Hotch closed his eyes and took in a breath to calm his unruly nerves.

* * *

><p>JJ threw her hands up as she anticipated the attack, and pressed herself as far into the door as she could. Just as she closed her eyes to accept her fate the barrier she had all her weight on flew open and she fell backwards. As she frantically scrambled away from the entrance the creature's teeth caught her pant leg and began to twist and pull violently. She cried out at the sharp pain as her leg became mangled in the chaos. The attack was stopped by a sudden boot that came down on its head. The large dog whimpered in pain and before it could recover the door was sealed shut.<p>

JJ stared up in disbelief as Derek came into view over her. He saw her confusion as she looked to him then around the room.

"Weak wall construction," he said with a half smile.

She looked to his wrist that he raised and saw the shackle that dangled from it with a piece of the wall still attached. She turned her eyes up towards him and smiled back in awe.

He knelt down and ran his hand over her now blood soaked pant leg. She hissed as he separated the material from the gash to take a look at the damage. She watched him work then her eyes drifted passed him and caught sight of the row of crossbows that lined the wall in front of her. She stared wide eyed and her mouth dropped open in shock at what the action of the door cause. A rope attached to the knob spilt off and ran to each of the crossbow's triggers. She felt her breath catch as she realized that if she had opened the door it would have released a barrage of bolts into Derek, who had been bound to the wall across from them. She then looked to where he had been and saw the array of bolts embedded into the wall.

"It's not that deep," he said and began to remove his shirt, "but we should use something to compress it to stop the bleeding."

"Anything to take your shirt off huh?" She said and weakly smiled in her attempt to lighten the horrors they were facing.

He just smiled at her then looked back down at her leg, "I could rip your pant leg up more for a bandage if you prefer."

"I can part with them, the dog already ripped it beyond repair."

He let out a small laugh as he replaced his shirt and busied himself with making a dressing. Satisfied he reached his hand out to help her up, and as she rose he held her steady while she attempted to stand on shaky legs.

JJ clasped her hands together to gain control of the tremors that wracked her. She wanted to move but her fear kept her in her spot and only looked past Derek to the closed door and tried not to see the dog pounce at her. His soothing voice began to calm her and she tried to focus on what he was saying.

"It's going to be okay."

"Yeah," she nodded and tried to convince herself that it was true.

"Damon Herst is our UnSub." He said plainly.

"Yeah I know, but Bane is his partner."

"What?"

She quickly filled him in on Bane, and what Herst had told her.

He crossed his arms as he listened and when she finished he leaned back on his heels, "So Hotch was the last person you were with but what about Prentiss?"

The sudden memory struck her and she couldn't believe that it was not the first thing to remember.

"Emily, oh God, Emily! We have to go back!" She began to head to the door when Derek's hand grabbed her shoulder to stop her.

"We can't go without a weapon, especially with that dog still out there."

"I left her, I can't, we need to-" she stumbled over her words and began to limp in a frenzy around the room.

"Okay, we will, but we need to be smart."

She drew up short and looked straight into his eyes, "Of course but Derek we've got to do it fast. I just don't know how, I mean she's-" she stopped and shook her head as she tried to control her words again. "She wouldn't tell me how to save her."

"Save her? Save her from what?"

"I don't know. She just kept telling me to leave."

"You need to give me more than that."

JJ drew in a breath as she began to recall how she had left Emily. "She's chained to a wall."

The images suddenly flooded her mind and she had to pause. She closed her eyes before she continued, "There is a table with keys I assume to unlock her, but there is a line that is across the floor. I'm not sure what its for."

Derek crossed his arms and looked around the room, "Herst has rules for each of us. We found away around mine, obviously because we're both still alive. There has to be a way around hers."

"I just don't know," JJ said as she dropped her head and couldn't help but reveal her doubt.

Morgan drew in close and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. It stopped her agitated movements and she took a breath to pull herself together.

He then looked around the room again and slowly he withdrew his hand from her. He walked back over to the wall that he had been previously attached to and leaned in. He grabbed the end of one of the bolts that had imbedded itself in the wall and twisted and pulled on it until he was able to work it out. He repeated the process with the others but was only able to get two more out.

"We now have a weapon." He said and gestured to the crossbows on the wall.

He unhooked one and armed it and handed it to JJ before he removed one for himself. He then placed the extra bolt in his pocket.

"Let's go get Prentiss."

* * *

><p>When Emily realized that JJ was gone she wanted to feel relief that her friends death was postponed for the moment. She had no doubt that if JJ survived whatever else was in store for her she would be back. She fought the haze that over took her to figure out a way to communicate when she did.<p>

Time seemed to halt and she would drift in and out of consciousness when her mind no longer wanted to deal with the cycles of the twisting and agonizing pain. Her muscles pushed and pulled for dominance unsure of their role and when there was no success in their effort they would release in a shaky defeat.

Her arm began to fatigue more and waves of cramps swept over her muscles. They would knot in deep relentless throbbing pain. The way her body hung she felt like she was suffocating somehow. She could draw in small breaths but to exhale became nearly impossible. When she could find the ground she would force her weak legs to create some resistance and try to push her body upward to allow her tortured lungs to make frantic efforts to grasp small gulps of air.

She couldn't help but feel that her struggle to control anything was becoming useless as her legs failed at an attempt to push her up for more air. She conceited and let her head fall as the darkness took her again.

* * *

><p>Carefully Morgan opened the door and peered out. When there was no sign of the dog he stepped out a little further then looked over his shoulder for JJ to follow. She was quick to fall into step behind him and they began to move slowly down the hall.<p>

When they got to the top of the stairs Derek halted and they looked down the dark path and was relieved when there was no sign of the dog. JJ let out a heavy breath before she took the tentative steps to follow Morgan down the stairs. They moved cautiously with the crossbows up ready for an attack. At the bottom they stopped again and Derek looked from the door to the dark hall.

"Now what?"

JJ pointed to the door, "Emily's in there, but Derek-"

Her words were cut off by the snarling and growl of the dog that suddenly appeared again and leapt towards them. Derek didn't hesitate to raise the crossbow and pull the trigger. The last sounds that echoed past them was the yelp from the dog and the thump of its body as it landed lifelessly onto the floor.

JJ felt her heart pump in a fury as the adrenaline coursed through her and she felt as though her nerves were shattered. She was not sure how many more possible death traps she could handle. She stared down to the motionless dog and back to Morgan who silently acknowledged her as he loaded the crossbow with his last bolt.

"Come on," she choked out and turned to the door.

He moved to the side as she opened it and stepped into the room.

Morgan was not prepared for the sight he was about to see. He felt JJ's stare as she took in his reaction to Emily as she hung limply by one arm. Her head lay tilted against her chest and a makeshift sling barely supported her already injured arm. Her chest moved but it offered little solace and his worry increased as he watched her struggle for each breath. He tried to shake off his rattled nerves and began to step her way determined to save her.

His concern shifted to JJ when she put her arm out to stop him before he could cross the painted line on the floor. As his eyes went back to the brunette he saw the table with the keys and was puzzled to what they needed to do.

He knelt near the line and tried to see if he could get Emily conscious and obtain any information on how to proceed. He knew Herst gave specific instructions for each of them, but only for them to know, as death was the consequence if they shared. He just needed to find a way to communicate.

"Prentiss," he whispered. When she did not respond he repeated the call and gradually became louder.

"EMILY!" He yelled and with the peak of his voice her head began to move. Small noises filtered out from her as she began to come around.

He remained in his crouch until her eyes opened and he gained her focus. She looked at him in confusion and her mouth moved slightly but no words came out.

"What do we do?" JJ asked nervously from behind him.

He gave her an uncertain look and shrugged before he began to stand. He looked back over and his heart sank at Emily's glossed and dark distant eyes that tried to follow his movements.

He knew he needed to act fast and looked down to the line. He followed it across the floor but he didn't see anything that would be triggered if he crossed it.

He looked back to Emily, "Can I come across?"

She continued to stare at him but did not answer. Then she raised her eyebrows and slowly blinked.

He looked over to JJ who didn't know how to respond and shrugged. He turned back and tried again, "Can JJ come across?"

She held her eyes open wide and then blinked twice. He smiled at her to assure her he understood and began to move.

"Good enough for me," he mumbled under his breath.

"What?" JJ asked as she watched him step cautiously over the line.

He paused on the other side and when nothing happened he made his way to the small table. He saw the four keys lined and then looked over to the lock. When his eyes moved down to Emily the suffocating panic was back when he saw that her head had dropped again and her eyes were closed.

"No, no," he pleaded, "Emily I need you to stay with me."

She slowly lifted her lids and looked up to him but with only her eyes. He moved over to her and saw that she continued to struggle for a breath. He gently wrapped his arms around her chest and slowly raised her and she gasped as the fresh oxygen replaced the stale air that had occupied her lungs.

"What did the bastard do to you?" He growled as he looked over her limp body that he held in his arms.

Once she was breathing better her head dropped back down into his chest and he adjusted to support it. He needed to focus on the lock but the trembling in her body stole it and couldn't keep from looking down to her. She'd take in shaky breathes and with each exhale came a whimper of pain, and he became overwhelmed with the urgency to hurry.

"Do you know which key it is?"

She did not respond at first, but began to move her head and raised it to meet his eyes. She stared at him and blinked twice. He gave her a knowing smile to tell her that he understood the only way she could communicate.

"Okay baby, listen to me, I'm going to get you down even if I have to try all those keys."

At his words her eyes became wide and he saw more distress fill them. She blinked twice again and Derek leaned back to understand. She was saying no but he needed to make sure he was clear to make the right decisions.

As he spoke he made his statement sound more like a question, "I'll get it right with the first one then?"

He watched her again as she blinked only once.

_Great_ he thought. He had one shot to get it right, and was unsure what would happen if he was wrong. He turned his attention back to the lock and then to the table. He didn't want to force her back into the awkward and obviously painful position she had been in and looked back to JJ.

He leaned in and whispered in Emily's ear, "Can JJ cross the line now?"

She answered him with two simple blinks. It was not the answer he wanted, there was no way he wanted to put her in more pain, but the rules dictated their actions. Derek made a pledge that he'd make sure Herst got everything that was coming to him. The man was messing with the wrong group of people.

He put his head back down near hers and spoke softly, "I have to go back to the table now. Hang on for me."

He felt her tense and he hesitated for a moment regretting what he had to do. Then he realized time was crucial and he slowly released her back down. He felt her pain and his anger began to boil up as he watched her face show the torment her body was being put through.

He moved quickly to the table and examined the keys, and it became clear it was all a gamble. They all looked the same; nothing spectacular jumped out from any of them. His focus began to blur as he feared he would pick the wrong one. He ran his hand over his head and let out a deep breath. He looked to JJ who was pacing behind the line but her eyes never left Emily.

* * *

><p>Aaron shifted slightly on the dirt floor but didn't take his eyes from Herst. The man appeared to have forgotten where he was as he was drawn into what he was watching.<p>

Aaron jumped as the man's voice rose and he reacted, "NO!"

He then ran his hand through his hair in irritation, "Damn it! No!"

Aaron felt a small hint of excitement that maybe something went right for them.

He wanted so desperately to see what was going on but by Herst's reaction it was doubtful.

Suddenly the man's attention was back to the profiler, "Well it looks like I need to intervene a little more."

"What?" Aaron asked as he watched the man move over him and begin to climb the ladder.

He pulled at his cuffs once more in vain, but paused when Damon stopped above him. Hotch squinted up to see him, and flinched suddenly when something hit his face and bounced onto the dirt. Aaron looked around to see what had just assaulted him but adverted his attention back when he heard Herst speaking.

"Let's see who can get there first." Then with a laugh the man made his way out of the small hole and closed the hatch.

Aaron looked to the ground again and saw the keys to the handcuffs. He adjusted himself and used his feet to reach them and pulled them in to be able to grab them. He fumbled with the lock as he felt the frenzy to not let the man get to his team, who besides JJ he was not sure was there. He had no advantage and would just have to follow his gut and instinct if he was going to succeed.

When he found success at releasing himself from the ladder rung he looked up to the hatch then back to the tunnel. He decided his first attempt would be to climb the ladder, but quickly was met with locked resistance. He dropped down and turned to head down the dim tunnel. He wanted to sprint through it but was not going to trust that it would be that easy.

* * *

><p><em>You can do this<em>, Derek said to himself as he looked closer at the detail of the keys. His heart leapt as he saw that only two of the keys had actual wear on the teeth and scratches in the metal. He moved over to the lock and felt the excitement increase as he saw that the keyhole had similar markings as well as a small amount of silver flaking. He separated the two that had no signs that they had ever been used, and he felt his confidence rise when he saw the key he knew was right. He picked up the only one that the wear that was consistent with being turned in a lock, and there was silver flaking on the section of the key where the handle and neck met.

He smiled back to JJ and picked up the key and without hesitation and moved back over to Emily. He inserted it into the lock and felt the relief when he heard the bolt give way and release. He moved to help break Emily's fall as she collapsed to the ground. He was shocked at how fast JJ had reached them, but he kept his attention to Emily.

"Prentiss?" He called to her, and when she didn't answer he tried to control the fear he felt that begin to creep up again. He ran a hand over her forehead then paused on her neck to feel her pulse. Her chest moved in a rapid succession as it filled and released its contents to regain its proper ratio again. He became concerned at what the right thing to do was and he wasn't sure the best position to set her in. He gently tried to lay her on her back but remembered her comment on the jet that the only comfortable position she could find was upright. He gently moved her until she was against the wall.

He studied the tie that was no longer an efficient sling, and JJ spoke to his concern.

"Use your shirt, that's what Hotch was going to do but his cuffs kept him from taking it off."

He agreed and pulled his shirt off and expertly folded it.

"Hold her arm," he instructed JJ as he began to remove the tie to replace it with his shirt. She complied and watched Morgan work. He was efficient but gentle as he supported her arm and stabilized it with the tie around her chest.

"I hope this helps some," JJ whispered as she stared at Emily's ghostly appearance.

"Damn," Derek said and then looked up to JJ, "we need to figure out how we're going to move her."

JJ looked to Emily then back to Derek and her voice trembled with uncertainty, "I don't know, should we I mean-"

"We don't have a choice, we can't leave her." Derek responded as he continued to find the right position for her. "We just need a plan. We have to find a way out safely and still be able to protect her."

JJ moved back and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Damn, this is all part of his game."

"What's that?"

"He said we wouldn't want her on our team."

His eyes shot up to the blonde who held her hand over her mouth as if she regretted the words that escaped.

"What are you saying JJ?" He asked in an accusatory tone.

"I'm not saying anything!" She fired back. "We're not leaving her I just don't know what to do okay. This whole situation is fucked!"

He nodded and put this hand up to calm her. "Okay, we wait then."

"For what?"

"For her to rest, and hope when she comes to she'll be able to move with us. We have the crossbows to protect us for now, we can hole up here for a little bit."

"I'm sure Herst knows what's going on. He's probably been watching all of our moves."

Derek looked back up to the blonde and had to agree but they had no choice. He was unsure of all of Emily's injuries and didn't want to jar her in any way. He wanted more than anything for these small victories to mean something.

"Why don't you stay by her and I'll see if I can figure out what to do."

JJ acknowledged him and moved to sit next to Emily. She place a protective arm lightly behind her for support and let her head rest against her chest. She wanted to soothe the trembling she felt coming from her but was unsure how. With her other hand she moved the crossbow close to her side and looked over to see what Morgan was doing.

As Derek glanced once more to JJ and Emily he felt an overpowering need to protect them and to get them safely out of this hell. His determination built up and he looked at the room in detail as he began to move around it. He stopped at the large door and ran his hands along it before he stopped at the lock. He then looked back to the table and a small spark of hope was lit.

"I wonder if one of those keys opens this lock?"

JJ shrugged and was about to speak when she heard a hint of a familiar voice.

Morgan stopped when the voice was there again but seemed nearer, and coming from the opposite side of the door. She watched in curiosity as Morgan drew up close and leaned in to listen. When the voice appeared even louder he stood up straight.

"Hotch!"

There was silence then a loud bang rattled the door.

They listened again and Hotch's warning came through clear, "Herst is coming your way!"

Before Derek could answer a sinister voice echoed from behind them, "I'm already here."

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><p><em>Thank you for reading! And please let me know if you are enjoying the story! I love the feedback it motivates me!<em>

_And thank you to RJ Russell for the vast knowledge of keys, but more for the continual nudge of encouragement!_

_Review Review Review!_


	11. Loss of Control

_Thank you! Thank you so much for the reviews alerts and favs! Keep them coming!_

_Happy reading!_

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><p>Spencer looked at the phone and then tilted his head to catch Dave's eye. The text was not lost on him and he looked to the door.<p>

"We need to play this right. The best thing is not to let on that we know anything."

"So what do we do?" Reid asked quietly as he pushed the phone back into its original position.

"Let's move away so he doesn't see us near his phone." The elder profile nudged the Doctor back to their designated work space. "Then when he comes in have him join us for a cognitive interview."

"Why would he do that?"

"He's trying to make it appear that he's on our side so he'll play along to try and get you alone."

"Okay." Reid shrugged still uncertain and slightly unnerved that he was next up on their list.

When they got a safe distance from the desk Dave thought for a moment then pulled his phone out and pressed his speed dial for Garcia.

When she picked up the line was silent at first and Rossi could hear the keyboard click as their resident hacker's fingers expertly pressed them.

"You're calling me to give information not get any right?" Her cool voice was unexpected and Dave was confused by the greeting. He lost his thought as he tried to figure out a response.

"Garcia what's wrong?" He finally asked in a weary voice and cringed for the response.

"What's wrong?" Her voice increased in volume and Dave had to push the phone from his ear and his look to Reid for support did not save him from her sharp tone as she continued. "Are you seriously asking me that?"

"Penelope-" he tried to intervene in a calm voice to no avail.

"No, Supervisory Special Agent David Rossi you listen to me. I had called the urgent care and every place around it but there are no records of Emily being checked in. I even hacked into the security cameras to look through the waiting room. Not one of my lovelies was there by the way."

Dave made an attempt to speak when she took in a breath between her words but her jagged voice kept him at bay, "And Derek is still not answering but his phone is conveniently in the same spot. So do you want to tell me what's going on?"

Dave shook his head and once again looked to Reid who could only offer a look of condolence to be on the receiving end of Garcia's frustration.

"We don't know, that's what we're trying to figure out. We need you focused and when you're calm we can continue."

"That's easy for you! I hate being so far away and I feel so helpless!" She took in some controlled breathes and let her voice soften as she exhaled, "I'm sorry."

"Penelope you are so important to this team where you are and all the information you get will help bring everyone back."

He could hear her take in a few more deep breathes and remained silent on the other end, but the clacking of keys continued.

After a brief pause her confident voice finally broke through, "My endless skills are at your disposal. What do you need?"

"Good, everything you can get on Karl Bane."

* * *

><p>Derek spun around and rose the crossbow up to the man that stood tall at the bottom of the stairs.<p>

Damon remained unaffected by the alternate weapon pointed in his direction and held his gun stretched out and began to laugh as he spoke. "Are you trying to intimidate me with your muscles?"

Derek refused to respond and adjusted his stance then quickly shifted his eyes to JJ who he saw pull her own weapon closer. She moved slow and tried to adjust herself so she could remove her arm from behind Prentiss to handle the crossbow more appropriately. As she tilted herself to the side Emily began to stir and lifted her head.

The groan of pain that made its way from the far wall caught Herst's attention. He smiled and then creased his brow in a more serious expression. "I'd stay real still and let go of that bow." He warned and alined the direction of the gun to face JJ.

JJ glared back up to him but clutched the handle tighter. They were in an obvious disadvantage but she wasn't going to go down without a fight. She decided to not pull her other arm out from Emily yet. She realized that as she came to Emily was struggling to support herself. JJ moved closer to wrap her arm around Prentiss' waist to help stabilize her. It took everything in her to not look over to the brunette when the small whimpers escaped with every exhale.

Derek made a step to the side to pull Damon's focus back to him. "Let's just stop this."

"I don't think you're in a position to make that decision. What do you think will make it first my bullet or your already useless bolt? You got lucky with my dog."

He adjusted his weight and kept his eyes moving between Derek and the two female agents. He spit his words out in both directions. "Which by the way needs to be answered for."

Morgan tried to think they had some chance. The room was not large and he figured if he drew the fire away from JJ and Prentiss, with at least an attempt, he had no doubt JJ would use the distraction to take a shot as well. It increased their odds and he was willing to take the gamble if it saved their lives.

As the two men continued their silent stare down Derek felt his finger twitch on the trigger. If it were a gun in his hand he would be more than confident that he had the advantage, but this weapon was not in his comfort zone. Damon was right that the bolt would travel slower and his was quite deformed from its previous impact with the wall.

Damon scoffed at the dark agent. He felt no threat from Derek and really couldn't take him serious without a shirt on. He still was in control and he knew Derek felt it. He was confident that there was no way JJ could get into a position to have any effect with her crossbow and Emily was useless to do anything. Her eyes were on him but he could see she wasn't comprehending what was going on.

He decided to really put an end to the annoyances in front of him. The game had begun to drag out, and not unfolding like he had hoped. In his perfect plan they should all be dead by now. He needed to adjust and figured if he took the two woman out it would leave Morgan and Hotch reeling, and just might bring his interest back. At his decision he turned all of his attention to Emily and JJ unsure who he'd enjoy seeing go first.

"Don't do it Damon!" Derek warned from behind him.

He only cocked his head back, "Not now muscle man I have something to do."

Derek took the threat to end the madness that was in front of them. He didn't hesitate and let his finger pull back on the trigger. When nothing happened he felt his stomach drop and he looked down to see that the bolt still sat where he had loaded it. His lack of knowledge of the weapon became apparent and he felt helpless to do anything. He tried not to show the fear that began to emerge from him.

Damon looked back in amusement at his empty attempt but his enjoyment suddenly vanished with the realization of his own distress. He threw a hand down to his leg to acknowledge the newly acquired injury. His emotions ran the gamut then settled on rage and directed his crazed eyes to the perpetrator.

"You bitch!" He yelled out and readjusted his gun again to face her.

The satisfaction of hitting her target fled as soon as JJ realized it was a mere distraction that only enraged him.

* * *

><p>Reid paced in a small circle near the boards and kept his eyes down as he tried to understand what was unfolding. In one text so much had been revealed. His suspicions were valid and now they needed to make the moves to get to the team. He tried not to think it was too late. The text had said the players were in place so it gave him a small spark of hope that they would intercede Herst in time.<p>

"Reid please would you stop you're going to put a hole in the carpet."

Rossi's remark landed on deaf ears as Spencer continued his repetitive path. He only stopped when the frame of Bane came through the doorway.

He looked down to not give anything away, but was drawn back when he felt a light draft of air as Rossi flew passed him.

Rossi put his hand out to catch Bane's attention before he got to his phone. "Detective, do you feel up to that cognitive interview we talked about?"

The man froze and ran a shaky hand over his bruised face. He quickly gave an acknowledging smile, "Sure anything that could help. Not sure what else you'll get."

"You'd be surprised." He put a hand on the man's shoulders to guide him to their new destination. "Let's go into that room where its quiet, huh."

As the two walked Rossi nodded to Reid to join them.

With a small skip Reid moved to catch up with the two but not before he scooped up the cellphone from the desk.

Bane sat down and ran his hands over his face before he extended them over his head to stretch. He let them land with a thud on the desk and looked up to Dave. "Lets do this."

Rossi moved around the table and didn't take his eyes off the man and was more than determined to get the answers they craved from him.

Reid slowly shut the door behind him and then slide the Detective's phone across the table with the text clearly visible on the screen.

* * *

><p>As JJ stared at the barrel in front of her a blur that was Derek crossed the room and collided violently with Damon. Her instinctual reaction was to move the two of them out of the way. She knew the jolting from the inevitable shove would hurt Emily but in the spilt second they had she figured it would be better than death. She moved her arm to engulf Emily's waist and lifted her to move from the spot they had sat. JJ tried to roll her so she wouldn't take the brunt of the force as they hit the floor, but her legs tangled with Emily's and all of her weight transferred to the body under her.<p>

The spray of debris from the wall as the bullet blew into it was of little consequence compared to the blood curdling scream, that even with her body over the top of, could not muffle. JJ scurried to get off of Emily and instantly regretted her decision when she saw the side of Emily's body that took the brunt of the impact.

As the two men fought for dominance JJ struggled to get a clear look at what damage had been done.

* * *

><p>Rossi and Reid towered over the Detective as he read the text. He swallowed hard but kept his head down.<p>

"So do you want to tell us how exactly you planned on getting Reid alone?"

The man only shrugged and did not answer.

"Where is Herst?"

When the man didn't answer again Dave slammed his hand down on the table and became satisfied when Karl jumped.

He turned his eyes up to Dave and shook his head, "You're not going to intimidate me. I know how interrogations work, I have run enough of them." He licked his lips and looked over to Reid, "and whose to say that's what the text is about."

Reid let out a small laugh, "You're not that smart."

Bane only shrugged and let his eyes fall back to the table in front of him.

"So tell me how long have you been bored with your life and job?"

The man's eyes shot up to the tall agent. He tilted his head in curiosity to what he was going to reveal.

"I mean you've been behind a desk for six months. You've not contributed in anyway to the department. Why are still you hanging around?"

He remained silent and rolled his eyes to Spencer but Rossi took the cue to jump in, "Bored in life and the job, well something like what Damon Herst had planned sounds exciting. But what I don't get is what you're getting out of all of this."

Reid took a step closer and kept his arms across his chest. "You're just a grunt to Herst. He'll sell you out the second he gets a chance."

"No, I think he's setting it up perfect." Rossi pulled the chair across from the detective and sat down. He was satisfied when he saw they had Bane's full attention.

"Damon Herst is after one thing and you're going to give it to him."

Bane's eyes narrowed as he attempted to comprehend what the senior profiler was saying.

"He's not one to share the glory with anyone, and you know that."

"You have no idea what you're talking about." Karl scoffed but started to show the uncertanty he was feeling.

Rossi interjected quickly, "I think he does, but regardless of Damon's plans for you we're going to intervene and you're going to comeback to the right side."

"Why would I do that?"

Spencer leaned across the table and came in close, "Because if anything happens to our friends you can guarantee that we will make sure you spend all of your time with the general population at the prison you're going to rot in."

* * *

><p>Damon had found the trigger but lost his target as the force of the Derek's hit took him down. The gun slid from his hands and skidding across the floor.<p>

In the seconds that he had to look Derek saw JJ scoop Emily up in an attempt to move them from the impending danger. He heard the horrifying scream but Damon's fists connecting with the side of his face brought him back to dealing with the monster. He used Damon's already injured leg as an advantage and with a free hand pressed down on the end of the bolt that poked out. Damon yelled out and as the tension of his body lessoned Morgan brought his balled fist down one last time across his face. When the man went limp below him Derek pushed himself up and released a breath. His face throbbed and his hand ached from the solid hits that he received and gave but he really had no time to concern himself with it.

He scanned the room for a way to confine Damon and his eyes landed on the shackle that hung loosely on the wall. He felt satisfied to know they were a step closer to winning. Just as he was about to move the dead weight across the room his head snapped around at JJ's frantic voice as she called to Prentiss. He couldn't take his eyes off her as she writhed in pain on the floor next to JJ. He checked Damon's pulse and felt the need to get him locked up but the urgency to check on JJ and Emily overwhelmed him. He made the decision to come back as soon as he knew the girls were okay.

"What's wrong?" He called out as he took large strides across the room. But before he could get an answer he saw the stain of blood that appear through Emily's shirt. He wasn't sure at first what he was seeing, but felt paralyzed at Emily's inability to hold back her cries and the shaking that overcame her body. Her eyes were sealed shut and she fought to remain still and somehow grasp the agony to control it.

JJ was doing everything she could to calm her down so they could understand what had happened. She was afraid to touch her but lightly swept her hand across her forehead and caught a few errant strands of hair and moved them out of the way.

"Emily look at me. Please open your eyes and look at me."

Her attempts were futile and Emily's breathing became more erratic and she began to choke on the air that was getting caught between inhaling and exhaling. Her eyes shot open and they held a distant pain that allowed the tears to stream down her face. Shock was taking hold and the two profilers were lost to what to do.

JJ gave a panicked look to Derek to take over and do something. He took the cue and moved over the brunette and edged JJ out of the way. JJ did not resist and she slipped to the other side of them. He gave JJ a look of concern before he reached out and cupped Emily's head in his hands and forced her to look at him.

"Prentiss, Prentiss look at me." He spoke softly at first to try and be a calming force she could cling onto.

* * *

><p>Bane looked at the two men that held him captive in the small room. He didn't feel intimidated but as the two agents spoke he realized he was on the losing end.<p>

He spun his phone on the table in contemplation, he really had no way out. He messed up by leaving his phone out to be seen. He was waiting for the text, but never actually thought they'd catch on.

He could feel their enraged eyes on him and it began to make his decision easier. Damon would kill him for this mistake, but if he played along and get the agents back he may find himself with the better end of the deal.

After a few minutes lost in his own thoughts he brought himself to look over to the impatient agents. "What do you need?"

"Good move." Rossi nodded and pushed his chair back. "Text him back exactly how you planned to confirm that you had succeeded in abducting Dr. Reid. Then you're going to lead us to where our team is."

* * *

><p>Emily's mind fought the signals to shut down in an attempt to understand the excruciating pain that overtook all of her senses. She saw Derek in front of her but the only thing she could acknowledge was that with every micro movement the pain that radiated from her shoulder became worse and more unbearable. She began to lose control and the panic that gripped her was winning. She found that she couldn't catch her breath and all of her attempts to do so were useless. When Derek's hand held her steady it was the only instance she felt any focus and she allowed herself to look at him.<p>

His voice was pleading but strong, "Breath for me please. Take in a breath, slowly."

As she stared into his soft brown eyes she complied and slowly drew in the air that she needed and with its release she felt a small sense of calm emerge. She repeated it and felt her heart slow a little and some clarity filtered into her mind.

"There you go baby. There you go." Derek smiled in encouragement as he watched Emily's eyes focus a little better. He wanted to check the source of the blood and discomfort but JJ's uneven voice drew him away.

She pointed to the spot where an unconscious Herst had been.

Derek shot up, "How the hell?"

He cursed himself that he was so absorbed in helping Prentiss he had forgotten about him. Derek's eyes followed a small trail of blood that led up the stairs, and then moved to the now vacant spot he had left Damon. He shook his head in disbelief and looked back to JJ.

"He was out cold. Shit!"

"What do we do now?"

"I don't know."

Then he remembered Hotch on the other side of the door, who had been relatively quiet up until that point and was now pounding on it for attention.

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><p><em>Thank you for reading! Please drop me a line to let me know your thoughts on the story!<em>

_Hotch POV next chapter, and will reveal what is wrong with Emily! __I have it in the works, but I'm moving this weekend so I can't say when it will be up, sorry!_


	12. Movement

_Thank you so much for the kind words and patience for the update. The move went well and almost completley unpacked!_

_Here is a long one for you!_

_Happy reading!_

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><p>Movement<p>

Reid watched the road as it moved quickly towards them and then pass. He was trying to concentrate on Garcia's words but just the urgency to get to the teams location over ran his thoughts.

Garcia's usually chipper voice was solemn as she relayed her information. "Okay so here's the scoop. Travis Carter, five times loser, fell off the face of the Earth three weeks ago."

Rossi spoke back to the Analyst but his eyes moved from the road to Spencer. "That's why he was filtered out of the suspect pool, makes sense. Who owns the property now?"

"That's the thing it's in the foreclosure process and listed as vacant."

"Well, that just makes it easier for Herst to use the property and not be caught." Dave then directed his comment to Spencer, "We need to come in quiet. If he's alerted he may initiate his end game sooner."

Reid just nodded to acknowledge the concern and Dave went back to his conversation with Penelope.

"Were you able to get an accurate layout of the property?"

"Yes, I sent it to you. There is a satellite photo as well. A lot of personal upgrades were made apparently. Please be careful."

"We will, thank you Garcia."

Before the line went dead her pleading voice filled the car. "Just stop the madness and put our family back together."

The last words grabbed Spencer out of his deep thoughts. He jerked his head to Rossi, "That's it! It was right in front of us."

"What's that?"

"Family, that's Herst's stressor. I remember when we first met him on that case in Indianapolis. I had noticed his OCD tendencies and he really pushed to be an active participant in the case."

"Okay, but he was a newbie then. How was that not just seen as driven?"

"Gideon purposely kept him at a distance, he must have seen something then."

"I still don't see how family is the stressor and why he targeted the team."

Reid shook his head and tried to control the speed he released his words, "We're a family, one he has wanted to be a part of and denied. When we were on the case in Indiana he had said his wife wasn't happy with him wanting to do more than a desk job. They had just found out she was pregnant."

"So something happened to his family. When we first got here he was already spiraling, and it triggered him further. Call Garcia back and see if there is anything on his wife and child."

* * *

><p>The dirt that surrounded Aaron filled his lungs as he breathed in hard from the exertion that running down the small tunnel caused. He coughed out and looked back down the passage and was satisfied that he took the chance. It was just the thought of an unknown danger that was a part of Damon's mind game. The tunnel looked as though it was dug out by hand and supported by intermittent two by fours. The few lights that illuminated from above hung loosely and he had to duck to avoid hitting his head as he moved. When he had reached a dead end he was left with a choice to go in two opposite directions; both equally questionable. The dead end itself was of better construction than the surrounding tunnel. He began to think that the tunnels circled the house, and guessed there would be another opening somewhere along the wall; he just had to find it.<p>

He looked around and could not make out where the two paths led with the lack of visibility, but he was aware that both choices were a gamble. Not wanting to waste anymore time Aaron settled on moving to his right. He was only a few strides down when a faint murmur of talking caught his attention. Aaron strained to listen and obtain the origin and who the voices belonged to.

The unmistakable tenor of Morgan hit him and he called out. He felt his heart begin to race faster, and he tried to control his excited thoughts that hearing Morgan had to mean the team had made it. He visualized the house surrounded by SWAT and that he had gotten to JJ, and that she was safe. That was when his thoughts went to Emily, and he tried to shake off the tightening in his chest and throat that resulted from the mere thought Damon had really shot her. He tried to focus so he could warn Morgan that Herst was their UnSub, and that he was headed their way.

He continued to call out but when there was no response he moved back towards the crossroads. His urgency to warn them of Damon overran his need to be cautious.

When Derek finally responded he relayed his information, but the sudden silence on the other side unnerved him. He was blind to what was happening and the lack of control was not a mental space he had any comfort in. He opted to remain silent so he could understand what was going on.

He held his breath to listen to the voices that drifted softly through the thick wall. He could make out Damon but could not get any significant information.

He began to pace when the voices stopped completely. His shuffling in the narrow passage was halted when a cry of pain rang out. He tried to focus on the origin of the cry, but Damon's angry response made it clear something was going down.

There was a small instance of silence that came after Damon's outburst but was broken by a crack of a gun. Over the top of the echoing blast was a scream that ran down Aaron's spine and shattered his nerves. The helplessness was overwhelming and all he could do was stare at the dark wall in front him. He fought his mind as it played images of what he prayed was no really happening on the other side.

He leaned his head against the structure for support and placed his palm flat against it and continued to listen. He heard JJ's voice pleading with someone but who it was he was not sure. The whirlwind of noises kept any clarity away. He thought he made out Emily's name, and the idea that Damon had bluffed gave him some reassurance, but the pitch and fear that left JJ contradicted his hopes.

He tried to grasp what could have gone wrong and why Morgan was alone entering the room. It all just added to his need to get on the other side so he could fully understand the situation.

Unable to hold his uncertainty back any longer he kicked the door to remind the occupants he was there. When the dirt drifted down from the wall a handle to a door revealed itself and he saw his chance. He repeatedly kicked the door and pulled on the handle as he called to the agents on the other end.

* * *

><p>The rattle and strong authoritative voice that came from the large door echoed through the room.<p>

"Hold on Hotch!" Derek yelled as he left his post by the stairs to try his idea of the keys.

As he turned passed the table Derek snagged up the remaining keys and ran to the door. He was shocked that his hands were shaking, but ignored it as he brought the first key to attempt unlocking it. As each one failed to be turned or even fit in the keyhole Derek cursed and threw them angrily to the floor. His head dropped in defeat and stared at the lock but was jerked from his mind when JJ spoke.

"Stand back Morgan."

He turned and saw her standing with the gun that had earlier flown from Damon's hands.

She then called out to the solid obstacle in front of her. "Hotch back away from the door."

After giving Aaron adequate time to distance himself she took aim and expertly pulled the trigger. The bullet screamed through air and as it made contact the lock and part of the door splintered in the violent eruption. She gave Derek a wink as she moved to the door.

He lifted one shoulder and smiled to acknowledge her arrogance and met her at the door to help open it.

The doors thickness and weight proved to be more of a challenge than the lock and refused to be budged at first. Its tracks were old and stuck from lack of use. They managed to slide open the stagnant barrier only a few inches as they strained to push and pull on it. After an exhausting effort the three agents finally succeeded in getting it wide enough for the Unit Chief to slide through.

As Aaron entered the new room he took a quick look at the two agents in front of him. He grimaced at Derek's cheek as it began to swell and bruise. Dried blood from a small gash over his eye matched the one from his split lip. He tried to hold back his shock and confusion to why he didn't have shirt on. This small detail shattered his hopes that Morgan was there with backup.

"Morgan what's going on? Where is everyone?"

He looked to JJ then gave Aaron a confused look,"everyone?"

"Reid, Rossi-" he then stopped himself and rephrased his question, "how did you get here?"

Morgan filled him in on what had happened, and as he listened his eyes moved and caught JJ's bloody leg that she tried not to favor as she limped around. At the information of Prentiss he looked passed Morgan to the brunette that now silently lay on the floor.

"What happened?" He asked as he moved away swiftly to get to Emily, whose scream he could still hear ringing in his ears. She had her eyes closed and her colorless cheeks drew in his concern even more. He scanned her for what he was expecting to be a gunshot wound, but the lack of blood gave him a small sense of relief.

He crouched over her and tentatively touched her hand that laid limply by her side.

"Prentiss?"

She only responded with a narrowing of her brow but returned to her previous state seconds later. He observed her and felt the others watching him make his assessment.

Aaron knew that the clavicle's fracture was the epicenter to her original discomfort but worried something more had happened as he saw the small stain of blood that seeped out from below the shirt. He turned his head to the two agents that stood in a silent fear as they watched Aaron take in her state.

"What happened?" He asked again as he lightly ran his fingers over her shoulder but did not touch the injury. He was hesitant to cause more pain, and at the moment she was calm and he wanted her to stay that way.

"I fell on her," JJ blurted out and looked down in shame.

"What?" Derek questioned and twisted his waist to face her and tried unsuccessfully to hide his alarm.

"I was trying to move us out of the line of fire and got caught up and she ended up underneath me. I-" she stopped herself as the emotions of the actions took their toll. She placed her head in her hands and closed her eyes in hopes she could hold back the tears.

Aaron gave JJ an apologetic smile but turned his focus to find out what was going on under Emily's shirt. He paused his action and looked around the room. He had forgotten that Herst had been in there and turned his head up towards Derek.

"Where's Herst?"

Derek looked to the stairs then spoke quickly, "I had him, but he got away before I could cuff him. He's injured so I think we may have some time but not a lot. We need a plan to get out of here."

Aaron raised his hand to stop him, "I know I just don't know if we can move her."

He heard JJ inhale deeply and shuffle away. He wanted to tell her it was okay but needed their focus to be on understanding what was happening with Prentiss. Herst was right that they are only as strong as their weakest link but that link was a damn strong one. He was sure they'd find a way.

He attempted again to get Emily's attention and at his more demanding tone she finally responded. She gazed lazily at him with half open lids.

It was enough for him and he offered her and smile and spoke softly, "How are you doing?"

She swallowed and licked her lips to work up the effort to speak.

"Hurts." She whispered and slowly blinked up at him.

"We're getting out of here." He said in the most confident voice he could muster.

She gave him a weak grin but didn't verbally respond, and he kept talking to keep her attention.

"I need to check under your shirt to see what happened okay?"

She just stared at him but he took the fact that her eyes were open enough of an answer. He kept eye contact with her as he let his hands make their way to the injury. He had nothing to cut the material and had to settle with pulling the collar of her shirt across to uncover the trauma.

JJ's breath caught in her throat when she saw what was revealed beneath the thin material. She grabbed Morgan's arm for support and he caught her before her weak legs could give out. The guilt of what she had caused hit her with a merciless force.

Hotch replaced the shirt as gently as he could and fought his facial response to not alarm Emily of what he saw, but the image of the jagged bone that lacerated her skin and protruded briefly was an unsettling visual. The consequences of it were worrisome. He knew the risk of infection was a serious matter and he didn't know if there was any other damage done.

He was now at a loss at what to do. Every move, even in the makeshift sling, was going to cause an extreme and all consuming pain as the bone floated freely and continued to cut its way through. He offered her a reassuring smile and wasn't surprised when she didn't return it.

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><p>Emily watched through her haze as Aaron hovered over her not telling her what he had just looked at, but by JJ's response she knew it wasn't good. She didn't need them to reinforce that it was something bad. She could handle pain but the events of the last hours were testing her fortitude. She had heard the snap of the bone when Damon had pushed her into the car. She was confused at hearing another as JJ's weight had created an explosion of white hot pain that send her to the edge. She turned all of her remaining strength to focus on the pain and make it something benign but every pulse of her heart or twitch of a muscle thinned the line of what she thought she could handle. It was no place to lose herself but she wasn't sure how much longer she could hold on and not let herself break down.<p>

She swallowed to combat her dry mouth and attempted to speak again, "Tell me."

Her raspy whisper created a momentary stillness in the others. Aaron knelt back down and paused as their eyes met, and he tried to find the right words. When he spoke he attempted to cover the ultimate concern and hint of panic that laced his words.

"It looks like the impact caused an open fracture." He then paused to take in her reaction which was not much of one at first. She didn't seem surprised but it appeared to give her clarity at to why she was in an almost paralyzing pain.

"Great." She choked out and closed her eyes again and let the few tears that wanted to escape fall.

JJ paced nervously behind the huddle of bodies and looked around the room. As her mind spun she pulled the gun out from behind her back. She stared at the metal and saw the hope in it. She glanced back to Emily who face paled more as she allowed the two men to assist her into an upright position. She began to feel anxious and felt like a sitting duck in the room. She turned her concern back to the others.

"We need to get out of here."

Derek walked over to her and reached out for the gun. "I know. We need to be smart. Hotch said he didn't see a way for Herst to have cameras in the tunnel so maybe that's our safest bet."

"Yeah but-"

He looked back over to Hotch and Prentiss then lowered his voice, "We're going to have to move slow and if he can't see than it gives us more of a chance."

He examined the gun and released the magazine and JJ saw his face fall as he counted how many rounds were left.

"Damn."

"What?"

"Only one left."

"Better than none."

"I guess." He retorted as he tucked it behind his back and returned to Hotch's side. JJ watched them converse silently. The slow panic that had begun the minute they were thrown into this nightmare was beginning to reveal itself. JJ tried to take in a few breathes to right herself and be a source of strength.

After giving herself a pep talk she walked back over to the group and assisted the others as they brought Prentiss to her feet.

"We good to go?" Derek asked as he handed the gun over to Hotch.

Emily nodded slightly and everyone took the gesture to move to the large door.

JJ took the lead and squeezed through the narrow opening. Before Aaron went through he used his leverage to push the opening wide enough that Emily did not have to force her way through. She gave him a small appreciative smile, that he graciously returned.

After they all made it into the poorly lit corridor they split into pairs. JJ and Hotch took up the rear to cover their backs, and Morgan and Emily moved forward towards the unknown darkness. Emily moved extremely slow and Derek resisted the fact he wanted to fight her insistence that she walk. He kept his hands out and ready to assist to keep her steady.

After struggling to take a few well intended steps she stopped and pushed herself against the dirt wall. She closed her eyes and drew in short shallow breaths in an attempt to collect what miniscule thread of composure she still had. Emily recognized when she was still the pain decreased enough that she felt like she could continue but the moment she moved it only exacerbated her agony. The sharp burning sensation was so extreme it felt like a red hot poker being jammed into her shoulder. At the same instance she became paralyzed by her stomach flipping from the horrid sensation. She was very aware that she was dead weight to everyone else. She knew no one would admit it or turn their backs but she didn't want to keep them from succeeding.

When she reopened her eyes Derek was inches from her and his eyes were overrun with concern. He didn't say anything because there was no need to repeat the question when the answer was right in front of him. He just stood patiently for her to tell him what she needed.

She looked over to JJ and Hotch who stood back in respect, and kept on guard to anything unusual. She put her arm out and touched Derek lightly. She spoke softly but with as much determination as she could.

"Tell them to go ahead."

Morgan leaned back in shock to her words and shook his head in disapproval. "What? No, that's not happening. We all need to stay together."

"Stay with me then, but they need to make progress."

Derek didn't have to say a word to alert the two. They had kept sending worried glances back to try and understand what was going on. When JJ caught sight of Emily's look she nudged Aaron and they both moved forward to see what was going on.

"Everything okay?" Hotch asked as he eyed Emily.

Morgan shook his head but relayed Emily's wish. "She thinks she's holding everyone back and wants you two to make some headway."

"We are." JJ insisted.

Emily shook her head to the blonde but made sure Hotch caught the seriousness in her eyes. "No, you're not. I'm not saying leave us behind, I'm saying that by you two stopping every time I have to is counterproductive."

The group remained silent as they waited for their leader to make the final decision. Before he spoke he reached behind his back and pulled the weapon out and extended it to Derek.

Derek looked down at his hand and shook his head. "No, I think you should hold onto it."

"I'm not leaving you two unarmed."

"We both need it, there's no better choice. You hold onto it." Derek insisted and put his hand up to block Aaron from releasing the weapon to him. "If you find an out you most likely will encounter Herst before us."

Aaron reluctantly accepted then tilted his head to Emily to make sure what he said next was clear. "We'll try to keep a pace for you to keep up with, just do your best."

She nodded and watched as JJ and Hotch hesitantly disappeared past the line of light.

Emily straightened up against the wall only to cringe at the pain each movement cause.

"Whoa there princess. No rush remember."

"Yeah right," she quietly scoffed as she tried to pull herself together.

Emily didn't want too much distance to be put between them but she needed the time to mentally prepare her body for the necessary move.

"Do you want to sit?"

She shook her head slowly, "I'll never get backup then. Just another minute and we can go."

"No problem."

Derek looked back to where they came from and realized they had not really moved far from the door. Prentiss was right but he really didn't like being separated. He tried to think of a faster way to get her moving efficiently, and even considered carrying her if he knew it wouldn't hurt her or that she would actually allow it.

The minutes passed slowly and Derek began to feel a need to get going and when he looked back to Emily her face had a different kind of scowl like she was trying to figure something out.

"You okay?"

"Do yo smell that?"

He took in a curious breath, "Yeah it smells like smoke."

Both Agents looked behind them and saw the smoke as it began to billow out from the room and encompass the small tunnel and head towards them.

"We've got to go Prentiss! Now!"

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><p><em>It's about to get dicy for everyone next chapter..stay tuned!<em>

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_Thank you for reading!_


	13. Chapter 13

_I am blown away by the response thank you so much! Oh the pressure to deliver! ;) I really want to be update faster and I'm sorry I have not, we can blame my muse and life...but I can promise you I will never let the story go stagnant!_

_Thank you again for reading and as always I love to hear your thoughts of the story!_

_Happy reading!_

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><p>JJ found herself completely distracted by the choice that was made to separate from Emily and Derek. Of course she understood the logic but didn't agree with it. She would find herself stopping every few feet when the guilt paralyzed her. She'd look back into the dark mist that trailed behind them and would squint in wasted attempts and silently hope they would materialize from the abyss.<p>

Hotch could feel her unease and finally halted them to confront her. "Are you okay?"

She nodded slowly, "I just don't like leaving them behind, it doesn't feel right."

"We're not going to, okay. We find a way out and go back."

He saw that his words were no form of comfort and he continued to speak with false confidence. "That's if they have not caught up."

Reluctantly JJ once again accepted the decision and took one last look behind her before she pushed forward. They had not progressed much further when the ground began to slope upward. The incline was fairly steep but was not long until they encountered a short landing and a small set of stairs that led to a door. Both agents were cautious to how easily accessible it was and paused to take in the possible consequences.

Hotch took the initiative and climbed the few stairs and tentatively tested the door. When it gave him no resistance Hotch slowly lifted the gun to lead the way and had to move slightly as the door swung inward. JJ moved up to the second stair to see what may lay beyond the door. He cracked it open slightly and after looking out he dropped his head to face JJ. "It opens into what looks like a closet or hidden passageway. Its dark I can't really tell."

"Okay?" JJ asked in curiosity. She was once again confused to what the next move was going to be.

"Let's go back and get Morgan and Prentiss." Hotch spoke and turned his back to the door to descend the stairs.

JJ smiled internally and sighed in relief that they weren't leaving the tunnel without making sure they were all together.

Before Aaron could take a step the door swung open and knocked him swiftly in the back and propelled him forward. His loss of balance brought him in contact with JJ, who was still directly below him. The two flew down the stairs in an uncontrolled tumble. JJ felt the ground only when her head smashed against the hard bottom. She didn't have a chance to take in the effect when Aaron landed on top of her with an intense impact. The force caused her to black out briefly and when her focus began to clear she saw the boot that passed her line of sight and connected with Hotch's head.

JJ tried to see the attacker but the throbbing behind her eyes wouldn't allow it. She slowly turned over to her stomach to make an attempt at getting up. She used all of her effort to push herself to her knees, but the same boot reemerged and pinned her back down. Her aching head and body was helpless to fight it, but just as soon as the weight was there the pressure was released. Confused by the action she turned her head to try and see anything. She only was able to catch a glimpse of Damon as he dragged Aaron up the stairs and out of view.

When her eyes drifted back down they stopped on the gun that tittered on the edge of one of the stairs. She used what energy she could collect to get to her knees and then rise to a half standing position. Her head became light and she leaned against the wall to wait for her to adjust to her new position. When she felt she could sustain being upright she took uneven steps towards the stairs. As she moved on her uncooperative legs she tried to shake the dizziness and nausea that now wracked her.

Before she reached out for the gun she became distracted by a familiar and startling smell and she turned to see hints of smoke that had filtered her way. The confusion of what it was and what to do became strangely overwhelming to deal with. JJ leaned herself against the stair to comprehend more and saw the two forms of Morgan and Prentiss push their way through the fog of smoke. She was about to call out when a large hand grabbed her by her neck and pulled her away from her approaching friends. She tried to call out again but he covered her mouth and yanked her up. Her hands went instinctually to the assailants arms to relieve the pain they caused.

When she was removed from the dark tunnel they were only briefly in the dark hall that Hotch had described, and there was an opening that led to a large room bare of anything. As they emerged he threw her across the wood floor. She didn't have a chance to really take in her surroundings as a hard boot connected with her stomach. The air escaped in one gasp and she fought the pain to regain her breath but the unsympathetic force didn't relent as he continued his assault. She heard him cussing at her in between blows, but she could not fully comprehend his words. When he lifted her up she tried to stand on her weak legs which only resulted in him laughing at her.

She could fell that it would not take much more for her to lose the battle with staying conscious. Herst continued to add is voice to the reason he was doing all of this but she made no effort to understand him. She took his rant as an opportunity to gather herself a little more. She saw Hotch on the ground on the other side of the room, but had no clue to his state. She was aware of the smoke that began to trickle out from the doorway they had come through, and remembered briefly that Derek and Emily were right there.

She was brought back to Damon's purpose when he spoke of it being the end. With her reaction timed slowed she could only watch as his balled fist came across and smashed against her skull. The last thing she heard as she sank to darkness was what seemed like familiar voices that yelled her way.

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><p>Spencer remembered what Rossi had said about coming in quiet but when he saw the smoke drifting up from the house he didn't care anymore. He didn't want them to be too late because they remained cautious. He heard Rossi call in to dispatch the local Fire Department and then signaled for the others to surround the house.<p>

"We go in quiet, but prepared." Rossi spoke to both himself and Reid.

Spencer was satisfied that he felt the same urgency to get inside and find the team.

As they passed a large window Spencer felt his stomach flip as he saw a sharp hand fly across JJ's face. Rossi saw the same action and cursed under his breath. There was no hesitation any longer as they announced themselves and kicked their way in.

They entered the large room just as Damon turned his gun to face the blonde agent.

"Don't do it Damon!" Spencer yelled as he leveled his own gun.

Damon ignored the voice and lifted JJ up as a shield and forced the gun deep into her temple.

"I win." He mocked as he made eye contact with Spencer, and then looked to Rossi and shot him a smug smile.

Rossi responded in an even but determined tone, "It's not over."

Damon half laughed at the two in front of him. "Yes it is, look around you."

Spencer kept his eyes on Damon but knew the advantage was in his favor. He realized how grim the situation really was. In his peripheral he was aware that Hotch was down and could see him stir slightly, but fall when his body would fail him again. JJ's bloody and bruised face pierced him as did the glazed distant look in her eyes as she came to. There were too many unknown variable, but the one thing he could control was getting into Herst head and get the outcome they needed before it really became too late.

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><p>From the second they realized the smoke was filling the space it had engulfed them quickly. The oxygen consuming culprit invaded their noses mouths and lungs and sent them into unbearable coughing fits.<p>

The adrenaline and fear that spread through Emily overran the fact that the torturing pain was still there full force.

She was sent into a vicious cycle. Her already present pain caused short shallow breaths, and with each inhale brought in more smoke that led to more coughing and more pain. The endless cycle created new sets of problems for both agents for their progress and survival. Emily realized they would not be able to get below the smoke and the best thing was to use something cover their mouths. She reached out and grabbed Morgan to stop their movements.

He turned back in confusion. "What is it?" He asked between his own rough breathing and coughs.

"Take your shirt back," she wheezed out and tugged on the sling he had made for her.

"No." He said as he shook his head and tried to continue their progress forward.

Emily staggered forward again and caught his bare back with her begging hand, "Please," was all she could choke out as the smoke really began to take effect on her.

Not wanting to argue he complied and with shaking hands and hacking cough he removed the shirt as gently as he could. With her other hand Emily quickly went to hold the injured one, and had not realized how much the sling had supported it. Nausea turned in her stomach and when she tried to breath through the pain it resulted in more coughing. Her head whirled and she almost missed a step but Morgan's strong arm caught her around her waist before she lost any footing.

Derek then moved to her right side and extended the shirt between the two of them. With the cloth securely in place Derek half carried Emily, and she did little to fight his support.

Emily felt the headache and dizziness taking over her mind. They could no longer see anything in front of them but felt the incline and it slowed them down even more.

Derek was determined not to lose himself but felt himself grow weak, and Emily's practically dead weight strained him more. When the climb began to slow them more they clumsily ran into the stairs. Derek pushed on and climbed the stairs and set Prentiss on the top step before he attempted the door. His first try to push on it only resulted in resistance. In the fog that clouded their minds neither of them knew what the next step should be and Morgan pushed and then pulled on the door. As it flung towards him he was able to stabilize himself before it knocked him over. With the smoke burning his eyes and every part of him he wasted no time to get the two of them beyond the threshold and out of the tunnel. In the dark hallway he felt the exertion take its toll and the overpowering coughing spasms stopped him. He felt the overwhelming need to continue on when he saw that Prentiss eyes began to roll back and she fought her body to not give up.

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><p>Rossi took in the horrifying scene but kept his composure. He knew he needed to in order to find success in taking Herst down and saving his teammate. He hid his doubt as he looked to Aaron breathing but not moving, and then to JJ who was bleeding and barely conscious as Herst held her life in his hands.<p>

The situation only worsened when they became aware that the fire was spreading towards them as the room filled with black smoke. The urgency for resolution was never more evident.

Before he could engage Damon Spencer stepped tentatively forward and spoke.

"It doesn't have to end this way."

"I'm not stupid Doctor! I now there is no way out for me. So why not take everyone out with me?"

Spencer didn't let his eyes leave the madman in front of him. He became aware of the smoke as it circled the room and seeped out or the cracks. A tickle of a cough threatened each of them and they all knew it wouldn't be long until it overtook them.

Spencer began to speak fast to get Damon off center. He knew that the house was surrounded and if any one had a shot they'd take it. But he held JJ so tight into him he didn't see how that would realistically be possible so he had to fight a different battle.

"When did your wife leave you?"

"What?"

"Was it about a month ago when she took your son and filed for sole custody?"

"That's irrelevant, and you don't know anything about me."

"You had said your wife had wanted you out of the Bureau after your son was born."

"How do you know that?"

"You had mentioned it seven years ago in Indiana. She had just learned she was pregnant."

He saw the window open in Damon's eyes and Reid continued to push, "You found a compromise but never was satisfied. I think all you have is your career and that has been stalled out for years. Your OCD tendencies started to break down and when your wife left you no longer had control."

"Oh I have control, and always have." He spat at the doctor but the doubt laced his words.

"No, you were denied your family and projected your stressor onto us. We are a real family you could never be a part of."

"Shut up!" Herst screamed out and almost dropped JJ in his rage.

He was losing all of his control and composure but before Spencer could continue a large crash took everyones attention. All eyes went to the source and they saw Derek emerged from dark cloud of smoke that poured out from behind him. His body was convulsing in coughing fits he tried to control. He gave no notice to the man holding the scene hostage, and he pushed his way forward to distance himself and Emily from the life consuming horror behind them. Emily's feet barely touched the ground as he dragged her with him. He haphazardly had a shirt over her mouth and her eyes were open but only distance and pain filled them.

The distraction of the two bodies that barreled in alarmed Damon and he turned his gun towards Morgan. It was all the movement needed and Spencer didn't blink as he pulled the trigger. The room shook from the shot and everyone froze as Damon's lifeless body folded to the ground.

Spencer felt a sudden surge of panic as he surveyed their surroundings and was concerned how to get everyone out. Time suddenly felt like it was getting faster, the walls became smaller and every decibel of sound became louder. Their tormentor may have no longer been an issue but he left a wake or destruction. Hotch had begun to fully stir and Rossi was over him, Derek could barely hold onto Emily and his pace slowed to an almost nonexistent one.

He snapped out of his daze and ran to JJ. He pushed Herst's still body away from her and gently raised her up.

Rossi called over between the coughing that had taken him, "We need help in here to get everyone out."

Spencer once again looked around and the smoke was thicker and heavier than before. Reid knew that the number one cause of deaths in fires was smoke inhalation. Derek and Emily already had been exposed longer that anyone else and signs of more serious problems began to present themselves. The adrenaline pumping panic was back stronger than before as he lifted JJ up.

He fought his owns body reacting to the smoke that attacked his lungs and called back to Rossi. "We don't have time! We have to get everyone out now!"

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><p><em>Please don't hesitate to press that little review and comment button!<em>

_Thank you for reading!_


	14. Chapter 14

_Thank you so much for the reviews alerts and favs! I appreciate the patience for the long wait. This chapter was quite a challenge for me and want to thank RJ Russell for the motivation and for the accuracy. _

_Happy reading!_

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><p>The chaotic storm that had been silently brewing unleashed its fury without warning. Spencer's plea to escape had been overrun by the blinding and gagging smoke that encompassed the room. Flames angrily surged at them and caused the walls to bulge in response. The death trap that now held them hostage had begun to succumb to the fire that continued to chew at it in all directions.<p>

There was no longer any visibility, and their eyes burned with the heat. The fire created a head splitting roar as it devoured the walls, and their lungs filled with the poison that swirled around. Through the dark mist their rescue appeared like ghosts, and one by one they were extracted from the horror.

The atmosphere outside felt just as hectic as the unruly flames had behind them. The flashing of lights and shouting of voices came from all directions. Yet, even in it's over stimulating appearance there was an organization to this new chaos. Medics stood at the ready as the firefighters plucked the team out and passed them off to receive their much-needed attention.

Even free from the smoke Derek's eyes continued to burn and water. His chest was heavy and his head pounded with each wave of spasmodic coughing that hit him. He was vaguely aware of the movements as he was passed off to someone else. He did see that Emily was placed on a gurney that had suddenly appeared next to him and in seconds they picked up their pace to be moved to safety.

He had no clue of anyone else in the house besides Hotch and JJ. He tried to look around for them but his efforts were halted as the ground shook from the sudden explosion that slammed outward. Flames blew through the windows and the force lifted two of the escaping firefighters off their feet and sent them hurling forward and violently into the ground. Black smoke rolled out as debris settled. Time froze and for an eerie moment there was no sound. Just as quickly as everything stopped it sped up again to a frenzied pace. The medics that had been moving the team to the designated safe zone abandoned their posts for the fallen firefighters.

Derek did not know who had placed the oxygen mask over his mouth but he thankfully took in deep breaths to clear his lungs. He leaned against the back edge of the rig and tucked himself next to the open door for support. He let his aching head dip forward and as he pressed against the door he took in the slight relief the cold metal gave him.

The gurney Emily laid on was pulled up tight next to him and turned parallel to the opening of the ambulance. In his hazed confusion Morgan was unsure at what point her body had shut down, and now she lay with her head tilted towards him and besides the coughing that resulted from each breath she was almost motionless. He had not seen the person that had secured her mask and the only comfort he felt was that her chest moved as she drew in the oxygen. He tried to convince himself that if her state were more of a life-threatening situation the medics would have negotiated their triage differently.

The words of encouragement that Morgan wanted to desperately give her were held captive in his raw throat; instead he took his free hand and secured it into hers. He knew she would not return the pressure he gave, but he needed to feel her warmth as much as he hoped she felt his support.

He followed the trail of grime and ash that led from their hands and up her arm to her face. He felt a slight tightening in his chest as he cast his eyes on her gaunt appearance. Through the mask he could see the dark stains around her mouth and nose that the smoke had caused. His eyes traced the silent tears that had successfully slipped through and had run thickly down her cheeks. They smeared the soot that covered her face to reveal a much paler flesh.

All he could do was continue to watch her in a forced silence as she drew in short raspy breaths. With each torturous one she would wince as they resulted in a coughing fit that only inflicted more pain. When the convulsions would finally relent it appeared as if it became harder to regain her breath. Derek secured the mask more to her face in hopes to create a better flow of oxygen and make a difference.

The feverish movements in front of the house drew him away from her as the Medics worked quickly and efficiently on the injured firefighters. Sirens once again filled the air as more paramedics arrived on the scene. The rescuers were now the victims and any management of the situation was slipping.

As quickly as his attention was taken a tightening in his hand brought him back to the brunette. He looked from their intertwined fingers up to Emily's face. Her eyes were wide open but there was and emptiness and distance behind the dark orbs. A sudden wave of shaking and uncontrollable panic coursed through him. He instantly realized the wheezing and uneven breathes she had seconds ago now appeared to be choking her. Derek shot up to a standing position but the motion caused him to become light headed and weak, and he dug his hands into the edge of the gurney to hold himself from collapsing. Once he felt stable enough he tore off his mask to call out but his voice continued to fail him as he tried to grab anyone's attention. With all the active bodies that surrounded them he somehow felt abandoned and alone.

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><p>Hotch stood back and catalogued people, more specifically his people. He felt only slight relief to know they were out of the immediate danger of the burning building. The feeling was brief as he scanned their faces and saw them mixed with pain, shock and fear.<p>

A throbbing agony tunneled through his head and settled on his temples and behind his eyes. The blood pounded where his head was split from the solid boot that connected with him earlier. He used anything to distract himself from his own pain and knelt next to JJ. Her eyes moved with him and she tried to give a weak smile through her mask.

"How are you feeling?" He asked as he eyed her.

Her cheekbone was an array of blues and purples and the swelling began to seal her eye shut. Dried blood ran along her hairline and down her cheek. Aaron had felt a loss of time from the tunnel to that moment. It had been nothing but flashes of what felt like a dream. He could only imagine what Herst had done to her. The anger and agitation continued to boil up and he had to draw in a controlled breath to keep his composure. He was concerned with her lack of response and the shock that filled her eyes.

He slowly rose and took an icepack that Spencer had been handed and helped place it on the growing knot on JJ's head. He began to feel more impatient to the lack of attention they were receiving but put himself in check as he realized the firefighters were in desperate need of the medical attention they were getting. He kept his eyes moving and looked over to Morgan and became annoyed that he blocked his view of Prentiss. He could only make out the worn soles of her boots and couldn't help but think of all they have seen over the years. A pang of guilt to her state rushed through him, and felt the urgency to get the medics to her.

The sirens echoed louder and the flashing lights became brighter as the ambulances came into view. They came to an abrupt halt and the paramedics flew from the doors and moved to get their bearings and to get a grasp of who needed their attention.

Aaron watched but kept his eyes moving from JJ to the other rig where Emily and Derek were. Derek's sudden frenzied actions began to alarm Aaron. He had removed his mask and tried to attract anyone's attention to himself and Emily. Before Aaron could interject one of the older medics leaned back from the edge of a gurney that one of the firefighters now occupied and glanced in the direction of Morgan. Aaron watched for a reaction and was not sure how to take it as the controlled and calm man leaped back and haphazardly flung his bag over his shoulder and in a dead sprint headed to Emily. As he ran he shouted to the others that had begun to move around them.

Aaron did not hesitate to follow and tried to not let the corners of his mind shut down at the possibility of what was going on.

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><p>Derek's over exertion caused brief blackouts but he fought to keep himself going to get someone to respond to the dire emergency. As the tension Emily had held in his hand released he realized what was happening seconds before it did. He tried to call out again but a strong hand landed on his shoulder. He was brought down to a seated position and the oxygen mask was replaced over his face. He did not fight the action and as the stars cleared from his vision he could see the Medic arrive and replaced his spot over Emily.<p>

Everything that happened next became a blur. There were gloves and shouting and the arrival of more personnel. Derek closed his eyes briefly to listen to the controlled conversation that took place inches from him.

"What happened?" The Medic asked and Derek was not aware that it was directed to him and looked up when it remained unanswered.

"Parker, start a line." He said as he realized he was not going to get an answer. He then placed his stethoscope back around his neck and moved smoothly to the head of the gurney. "She's not breathing. I need an ET tube."

He spoke quickly as he lowered the gurney to a lay Emily flat. He placed a palm on her forehead and with the other hand pulled up on her chin. Without saying a word another medic handed him a laryngoscope and he placed it in his left hand then opened Emily's mouth. He inserted the scope and as he moved it upward and away his face contorted in frustration.

"Shit," he cursed under his breath.

The others looked to him for him to elaborate.

"What is it?"

He looked down as if making a critical decision. "I don't have a visual of the vocal cords. We've lost her airway."

With a swift movement he knelt down to his bag and unzipped it. He searched briefly and almost frantically then pulled up a small kit.

He opened the specific container and lined up the small instruments along Emily's chest. He spoke to the other Medics as he worked and they flowed in unison to accomplish the needed goal to create her new airway.

Morgan had to look down as the Medic expertly made a small incision in her throat. He tried not to hear Spencer's own shaky and emotional voice rattling off facts but he couldn't shut it out.

"He's performing a cricothyrotomy. An incision is made between the thyroid cartilage and circothroid cartilage. Then another transverse incision is made in the circothyroid membrane. It is actually much safer and more common than-"

"REID!" Morgan's voice cracked as he yelled out. He knew that the facts were a calming force for the young agent but he wanted to block out the whole situation.

Before Spencer could react he saw the tube being inserted into the small incision and then the attachment placed for the oxygen to be administered. There was a moment that everyone held their own breath as they waited for a positive result. There was what seemed to be an infinite pause and no one exhaled until her chest began to rise and fall.

The silence was broken by the strong voice of head Medic. "Let's go."

As Derek was ushered onto the bench of the ambulance he tried to close his eyes but could not take them from the woman being lifted in. The only visible form of life now was a tube in her throat that forced her lungs to work.

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><p><em>I hope that I can update sooner as long as real life behaves itself!<em>

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	15. Chapter 15

_Thank you for the continual support! The story progresses...and hope it continues to keep you._

_Happy reading!_

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><p>The sun hung just below the trees, but the light that danced through the leaves were just a blur as David Rossi pressed his foot down on the gas pedal. His eyes narrowed and focused on the flashing lights in front of him. His hands gripped tight around the wheel and his fingers dug in. Anxiety and urgency surged in his chest and the pressure felt like it would choke him.<p>

He would take slight glances to the other two passengers in the SUV. No one attempted to speak, and he really had no interest in hearing anything. The silence was enough of a conversation for him.

The drive was relatively short, but by the time they arrived the sun's rays no longer fought the darkness that loomed. Dave parked in the closest spot to the Emergency Room's double doors, and they rushed through the darkness to the brightly lit entrance. They ignored the stares as they crashed in. The majority of the people casually looked up at the intrusion then back to what they were doing, but the appearance of the three agents kept a few curious onlookers.

Aaron moved to the desk and caught a nurse's attention. He knew they would not have anything substantial to report, but wanted to make it clear that they were to be informed of any news.

After taking to the task of the necessary paperwork the almost still and quiet room was shook by Penelope, as she made her entrance. She paused briefly to take in the surroundings, and her wide panicked eyes searched out the familiar. She looked just as worn and stretched thin as they did. Her eyes were red rimmed and her usual vibrant makeup had been washed and wiped away from the worried, and angst ridden tears that had streamed down her cheeks. She slung her bag tighter over her shoulder and moved to probe for answers.

"My dears! Please tell me-" She stopped short when their empty looks hit her. She bit her lip and plopped down next to Spencer.

She looked to him but he sat in utter stillness as he stared at the doors that blocked him from three members of his family.

Before she could say another word, Aaron set down the clipboard and turned to face her. "We don't know anything yet."

"Nothing?" Her words caught in her throat and a small sob stole its way out. She fought to keep it down but the unknown rattled her. She hoped by the time she had arrived all would be resolved, and she could see her beloved family patched together. She knew it was a delusion but wanted more than anything for it to be a reality.

"No, I'm sorry. What I told you before we got here is all we know."

Penelope clutched her bag on her knees and joined Spencer in his silent mission of watching the doors. Hotch twisted his mouth to a grimace and when she did not return his look he swiveled back to his original position.

Every minute that passed was excruciating and felt like it extended on for hours. With a deep sigh Aaron climbed to his feet again and made his way to the nurses station he had visited every few minutes. This time he did not return as quickly, as the nurse spoke to him and handed him more papers.

Everyone perked up when he moved back to the occupied row of plastic chairs. "I finally have some information on JJ and Morgan." Before he could relay any of the details, a voice came from behind him.

"For Emily Prentiss?"

The voice belonged to a doctor that walked cautiously around the corner. He was an older Hispanic man. His thin glasses did not quite match his large nose, and his finely groomed hair was cut short and tight to his head. His eyes carefully slid over the troubled faces in front of him. He drew the chart in close to his chest as if it gave him a small sense of security, or an armor that protected him from the pain and suffering that surrounded him. Aaron knew this man could see each of their desperate hopes for something positive. His light brown eyes flickered past the group briefly then cast down before he opened his mouth to speak.

"Ms. Prentiss suffered acute smoke inhalation, which sent her into respiratory distress before her arrival." He paused briefly as he allowed his words to digest. "We made a call to the trauma surgeon during her transport. Our main concern was reestablishing her airway."

"Okay." Aaron encouraged.

The stalky doctor shifted slightly before he continued. "Within twenty minutes of arrival her CO levels had risen and there was serious concern of Carbon Monoxide poisoning. The surgeon ordered her to be transported to Mercy for treatment."

"So what are you saying?"

"Mercy is equipped with the hyperbaric chamber necessary for her treatment."

Spencer stepped forward and interrupted the doctor. "But Mercy is 87 miles from here."

"She was airlifted and has already arrived. We believe this treatment to be her best chance at surviving her injuries." He replied plainly then handed Aaron a card. "This is Doctor Carter's cell phone number. He is expecting your call, and can fill you in on her progress."

Aaron took the small paper and then extended his hand further. As they shook, the two men nodded in a silent understanding.

As the doctor slipped away his words had sucked the air out of their lungs and it was all any of them could do not to shutdown.

Aaron turned to the worry stricken faces behind him. Everyone felt every ounce of their being shredded and torn but they had little control of the situation. Aaron saw this and took the cue to grasp a piece of that control no matter how small.

"The nurse said JJ and Morgan are both done with tests for now. JJ is on the third floor and sedated at the moment, but can have a visitor. Morgan has just been put in a room on the second."

It was not even debated that Garcia was headed to check on Derek, and she didn't hesitate to get to the elevators.

Spencer let his eyes follow her form as it disappeared from view. When he turned back he swallowed quickly and his failing voice cracked as he spoke, "I'll go to JJ, I don't want her to be alone when she wakes up."

He looked between the two senior profilers and tried to be as stern as his emotions would allow. "You have to keep me updated."

"Of course," Rossi said and placed a reassuring hand on the young man's shoulder.

* * *

><p>The ambulance ride was a blur of movement, voices and pain. JJ's mind fought for clarity but the throbbing in her head denied her efforts. The pulsating agony that assaulted her kept time with the sharp pain that each breath created in her chest. As she was taken out she saw the blinding flash of red lights and felt the sudden gust of cold air as the she was pushed past the hospital doors. The walls began to feel like they were all going to enclose around her. She wanted to curl herself into a ball and disappear, but the voices speaking to her and about her became louder. The unfamiliar faces that hovered and surrounded her wouldn't allow her to mentally escape. After what seemed like endless test and prodding she was left in an uncertain silence. As she laid on the hospital bed her eyes became heavy as she stared at the IV that dripped rhythmically. Slowly they fluttered closed and when they sealed shut it felt like her body tilted and began to float. The painkillers had begun to take hold and all that was around her began to fall away. She stopped fighting it and let herself go.<p>

She woke to gray and cold. The warm voices she had heard in the distance were gone. She tried to fight the feeling of being alone and had wanted to wake up with some sense of hope. If she was to deal with the reality that was in front of her she had to believe in the ounce of the hope that lingered.

Slowly she rose from the bed and carefully moved herself to the small cabinet of a bathroom. She stared briefly at the stranger in the mirror. The swelling and bruising along with the red irritation from the smoke and emotions of everything hid her once brilliant blue eyes.

She turned the small knob for the faucet and let the water run briefly as she continued to take in her appearance. She winced as her ribs screamed at her when she bent down to splash water over her marred face. The water temperature shocked her and her legs became loose and weak. She recovered and gripped the edge of the sink to regain herself. After taking in a few controlled breaths, and one last glance at herself, she moved to return to the bed. As she emerged she was greeted with the shy and curious smile of Reid.

"Hey Spence," she whispered and tried to smile at him. She felt ridiculous to think she had been abandoned but waking to no one in the room had given her that immediate feeling.

"JJ, I'm so sorry, I was-" But he stopped himself as he saw in her eyes no apology was necessary. He creased his lips into a small smile then moved to help guide her across the room.

She looked the young agent over and placed a motherly hand on his shoulder.

"You look exhausted."

He leaned into her touch and nodded. "Sleep is not much of a priority right now." He paused as the images of Herst's fists colliding with her flashed in his mind. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay." She answered then hesitated at the bed and slowly spun to face Spencer again.

"How's everyone?"

Spencer did not answer at first and gently assisted the blonde into the bed.

"The nurse said you just have to finish this bag of fluid then you'll be discharged."

"Spencer don't avoid my question. I need to know." She tilted her head in an attempt to regain his attention. "How's Derek? Hotch? Emily?"

He pulled up the chair he had occupied earlier and sat up as straight as he could in it.

He began to speak fast and deliberate. "Hotch's okay. He has a mild concussion. Derek's downstairs, and Penelope is with him. He has some minor burns and mild smoke inhalation, but he's going to be okay."

He had to stop in an attempt to gather his thoughts, and fidgeted with the IV tube that ran from JJ's hand. "I don't know much about Emily. I just spoke to Hotch and he and Rossi just arrived at Mercy."

She grabbed his hand to halt his movements and words. "What are you talking about?"

She then squeezed his finger and made their eyes meet before she persisted further. "Tell me what's going on."

Spencer's lips twisted and he lowered his eyelids. His body slouched slightly as he recounted everything that had happened from the house to the hospital, and what little information the doctor had given them.

JJ could not say a word. Her emotions took control of her and she felt helpless to them. Everything he said was a knife plunged deeper into her. She twisted within herself wanting to be anywhere but that hospital, the sterile white room, or the bed she felt a prisoner to. She stared at Spencer and saw that his devastation was a direct reflection of hers.

Time and the unknown were their new tormentors, and they were held captive to it.

* * *

><p>Derek scrubbed his hands over his face and head. He exhaled forcefully as his arms came down to his side. The action resulted in a small coughing fit that tortured his lungs. When he finally regained his breath he slowly opened his eyes. They fell on the large concerned ones of Garcia. She stood in an unfamiliar fear and her stare pierced him through her cherry red frames.<p>

Morgan shifted uncomfortably in the bed. The sheets felt like sandpaper on his raw and burned back. As he grimaced and released a low grunt from his discomfort Penelope moved quickly to his side. Her hands hovered just over him too afraid to touch him but wanted to give him some comfort.

Derek saw her concern and answered to it, "I'm fine baby girl, really."

His voice was still hoarse and a low whisper but he tried to cover it with a smile.

She leaned up against the edge of the bed but didn't take her eyes from him, "I've been nothing but in a constant state of worry to get here and make sure you were okay."

"Thank you. I'll be fine, really." He squeezed the hand she had laced into his.

"Can you fill me in on everyone? I only know that JJ is the next floor up and no one will tell me anything about Emily."

"Derek-" She looked away for the first time as she tried to formulate her words.

When her pause began to drag it raised Derek's concern more. "Penelope, you need to tell me what's going on."

"I don't know anything, no one does."

"Is she alive?"

Garcia could only give a small ambiguous nod in response as her emotions began to overtake her again.

"Damn it girl." He cursed and moved to stand and leave the room.

She placed a firm hand on his chest to halt his movements. He leaned into it and they held each other in a silent battle.

Penelope held strong and Morgan finally relented, as his weak body was not interested in putting up a fight.

"You didn't see what I saw," he said as he let his head lay against the pillow; His eyes shut tight. "I can't get it out of my mind. I need to know."

When only silence filled the room Derek looked over and could see the pain and hurt swell in Penelope's eyes as they filled and overflowed.

Derek felt his heart sink as he looked to the one person that wore her emotions so clearly.

"I'm sorry, please don't cry."

"I can't help it. Everyone is so broken and in so many different places."

"Its just different rooms. We will make our rounds." He said in the most reassuring voice as he could. "What are a couple floors between us?" He asked with a small laugh.

Garcia didn't smile or respond. She took the colorful handkerchief she had been twisting in her hand and wiped her eyes again. As she performed the task she shook her head and Derek could tell she was holding something back.

"You've got to give me something here."

She cleared her throat and played with the edge of the blanket. "Em has been taken to another hospital for a specific oxygen treatment. That's all I know."

Derek felt the panic constrict in him but needed Penelope to keep together more. He rubbed her hand as he spoke, "Okay, so we just need to get over there then."

"But you're not ready. I mean you're-"

"I don't care what the doctor says I'm not staying here when I know I should be somewhere else."

* * *

><p>Aaron stood straighter than usual as he stared past the window, and Rossi paced small circles behind him. He would pause every so often to see if anything more was happening. After what felt like ages the door swung open on its silent hinges and the doctor emerged. His face could not completely hide his concerns as much as he tried.<p>

"Is it working?"

The doctor bit his lower lip and then formed a tight thin line as he debated his wording.

Rossi shifted his weight and crossed his arms tightly across his chest, "Come on Doc just give it to us."

"Alright, to be completely honest I don't know. We can only ride it out and see."

"That's it?" Aaron's voice rose only slightly with the dissatisfaction of the doctor's response. He attempted to keep calm but it took all of his effort to maintain it.

Aaron looked back though the window to the long cylindrical shaped tube that held Emily's life in the balance. She looked so small and fragile it was almost unbearable to look at.

"How long will she be in there?" Rossi asked.

"Because the atmospheric pressure within the chamber is doubled, we have to limit her exposure to a maximum of two hours. The chamber will alternate a pure oxygen dose for thirty minutes, followed by five minutes of normal breathing air. We are closely monitoring the oxygen levels in her blood, and we'll repeat the process if necessary."

"And this will save her life?"

"The goal is for the direct oxygen to clean her blood and lungs. I wish I could say for sure that it will be all she needs, but the truth is we don't know how she will respond."

With these words the doctor excused himself back into the room and his blunt statement weighed on them like a suffocating mass. Aaron and Dave crowded the window and tried to grasp that this really was a last attempt at a positive outcome. Aaron plunged his hands into his pockets and flipped his phone as he contemplated what words he could use that might give some comfort to the others.

* * *

><p><em>Thank you for reading..Prentiss POV coming up and of course more angst as everyone comes together!<em>

_Oh before I forget...thanks to RJ Russell for her awesomeness! ;oP_

_Please don't forget to tell me your thoughts! _


	16. Chapter 16

_Thank you for reading! All of the encouragement really means a lot! (I apologize in advance if you got a bunch of alerts and no chapter, the site seems to be acting wonky lately)_

_Happy reading!_

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><p>When they left the hospital the full moon was starting to make its presence known. The silver light bathed the almost desolate parking lot. Spencer kept himself close to JJ as they slowly made their way to the lone SUV. He kept a protective hand out in case she needed it, and she appreciated his concern but silently denied his offers for assistance.<p>

As they approached Derek grabbed the keys from Garcia after she fumbled to get them out of her purse. He needed to have control of something and just knowing he would get them to the other hospital at his pace was all he had at the moment.

He climbed in and stared out into the moonlit lot as he waited for everyone to get in. In the stillness he felt his emotions begin to boil up. All he could see was Emily broken and fragile and he was beyond helpless. His frustration and fears overwhelmed him. He gripped the steering wheel in an attempt to tear it in two, then yelled out and slammed his open palm across it.

Garcia jumped at the outburst then reached across and jerked the keys from the ignition. She slammed the door and in an instant had the driver's side open.

"Get out."

Derek's eyes were black with rage and pain but he didn't protest. He silently slipped out and avoided the looks from JJ and Reid as he moved around and climbed into the passengers seat.

"Alright then," Penelope muttered as she pulled out onto the street.

The drive quickly became long and drawn out as any positive words drifted away to an unnerving silence. They all desperately wanted to believe everything was going to be okay, but the doubt was an unrelenting beast that held them hostage.

When they finally came to a stop, the four crawled out of the SUV damaged and defeated. As they limped their way to the hospital's entrance a dark figure that had been leaning against the wall emerged into the light. He pulled his hands from his pockets and blocked their entrance into the building.

He glanced over their sullen face before he turned slightly to allow access.

"What have you got Rossi?" Morgan asked.

He shrugged and took in a breath before he looked up to the full moon as it reached its peak above him.

"It's a gorgeous night. The sky is so clear."

"Dave." JJ begged.

His lips moved up into a half smile as he turned to her, but faded quickly as his eyes scanned her broken face. "She's in surgery."

"Surgery?" Garcia asked with a panicked confusion in her voice.

"That's a good thing." He replied as he led them through the door. He didn't say another word and kept his head forward as he picked up his pace.

Reid was quick to give a better explanation when Penelope's face dropped.

"It means that Emily is stable enough to fix the fracture. The first priority is always to maintain and keep an airway. The ABC's."

"ABC's Spencer really?" JJ said as she tried to hide her annoyance.

"Airway breathing circulation-" he continued but JJ cut him off.

"I know what it means."

"I'm just trying to help," he muttered under his breath.

JJ reached out and stopped Spencer, "I know, I'm sorry, it's just a lot."

He gave her an accepting smile and moved to rejoin the others who were quickly retreating.

The group rounded the corner but paid no attention to their surroundings. It was nothing more than empty gurneys pushed up next to the bare white walls. Their movements were stopped when Dave halted in front of a room with a pale wooden door and a small window. They all peered in but were confused by the vacant space.

Before they could raise their concerns Rossi spoke up in a low voice. "This will be her room when she's out."

He then motioned in a new direction. "Hotch is in the family quiet room down the hall."

He turned his back again and began to move away. "I'm going to get some coffee. Anyone want anything?"

Rossi's behavior was startling, but no one expected anyone to really be themselves in the circumstances they had and continued to face. They answered with a unanimous no but not surprised he had not waited for the response.

With one last glance into the empty room they moved to join Aaron. As they opened the door they found Hotch standing motionless against the farthest wall. His mouth was dropped in the corners and dark shadows cast under his eyes from his narrowed brow. He only moved when the team circled him.

Before he could say anything the door opened again and a young doctor stepped through. He seemed startled by the addition of the people and searched out a familiar face.

Aaron took the cue and spoke up. "How is she doctor?"

The doctor wiped a hand over his forehead before he responded. "The surgery went as well as expected. We were concerned of infection because of the time the wound was exposed to air, but fortunately we found none, and successfully realigned the bone."

Garcia looked around the room and spoke up for everyone. "So when can we see her?"

He adjusted his feet in an almost uncomfortable manner. "She is Post Op ICU and will remain there until she can breathe without assistance."

"How long will that be?" Morgan asked.

"It depends on her. She responded well to the oxygen therapy but having to go into surgery we did not want to extubate. The nurse on duty can keep you updated on her progress."

When no more questions were presented the doctor smiled before he quickly ducked out of the room. The unwanted silence made itself known again as they continued to wait for more concrete answers to present themselves.

* * *

><p>JJ ran her fingers lightly over the thin white sheet that lay loosely over Emily. She swallowed her pain one excruciating lump at a time. She wanted to find comfort in the doctor's words that he was encouraged greatly by the progress she had already made. No one argued when JJ asked to sit in the room and be there when she finally woke up. They could all see how much she needed it.<p>

She had not told anyone about how unbearable it had been when she was faced with revealing that Emily had _died_. The decision had been made whether she had survived Doyle or not. It tore JJ apart to think she was losing her either way. She had sat next her for hours and begged her to fight and to not let him win. It was all she could do to hold herself together that day and now she felt the same feelings resurface. When she knew they got her back and Emily was safe JJ silently vowed to appreciate all the time they had together. The blinding reality that she may have just taken it all for granted now lay in front of her.

She watched Emily's chest rise and fall and found she held her own breath when there were pauses where she felt there shouldn't be any. She quickly ran out of things to say without being redundant. She had gone on a tangent about Henry that only seemed to soothe her own mind. She continued to play with the edge of the bed and found herself wanting to tell Emily how much this was her fault. That she did trust her and that it was her own self-doubt that lingered. She bit back her apologies and spoke encouraging words.

As the time passed the gaps of silence increased and JJ found she would just stare at Emily's eyes willing them to open. The rhythmic beeping of the machine didn't help with the exhaustion that JJ felt. She wanted to fight the sleep but her head lolled forward and her eyes drooped. Just as she felt herself nodding off an almost silent groan caught her attention. JJ's eyes shot to Emily's and saw her brow tighten, and the monitor began to beep a little more rapidly. JJ carefully placed Emily's hand in hers and held it gently as not to disturb the tubes and wires that ran from it.

Before she could say or do anything more Emily's eyes shot open. They searched above her lost and confused. JJ moved into her line of sight in hopes to give her something familiar to look at. As their eyes met JJ's heart leapt as she could see that Emily recognized her. Emily tried to say something but her voice was void of any sound. JJ could see that the inability to speak or move alarmed her and Emily's eyes widened more and told of her fear.

JJ placed a soft hand on Emily's shoulder and tried to soothe her. "Shh it's okay. Don't try to talk."

But her words gave no comfort as the monitor began to scream Emily's response.

The nurse appeared suddenly and with a gentle yet forceful hand moved around JJ.

"I'm sorry you're going to have to step out."

"Is everything okay?"

"Yes. Now please." The nurse responded and raised her eyebrows as she motioned towards the door.

JJ backed out slowly and listened to the nurse as she asked Emily questions and turned the machines off.

When she finally stopped moving she felt Morgan next to her.

"She's going to be okay."

"I know," she whispered and tried desperately to believe the words.

He continued to encourage and placed a hand on her shoulder. "The doctor said she could wake up confused."

She turned her head away from Derek and dropped her eyes as she spoke. "I've never seen her look so scared before."

* * *

><p>Emily stood in a strange confusion. She crossed her arms across her chest and stared to what was in front of her. She was trying to understand why she kept finding herself on the same grassy hill that overlooked a city of white buildings. She had never seen them before but they somehow felt familiar.<p>

The sunlight was brilliant and bright but there was no sun in the sky and the warmth from it never reached her. Her body and mind were in a paradox of heaviness that anchored her down and a light mental freedom.

Whispers continued to echo around her but none of the words made sense or held any significance to her. She chose not to focus on them until one she actually recognized filtered through. She strained to place who the voice belonged to and craved for it to give her some comfort. But the pain and fear that clung to the words brought the tortured memories forward. They came at her like bloodthirsty beasts awaken to feed and she was helpless to stop them. She tried to run but found her legs were cemented in place. The agony that encircled her began to push and pull her in different directions, and she was suddenly propelled forward. The pain and torment pounded into her in a patchwork of bits and pieces. She really couldn't put them together and really had no desire to. There was too much anger and sadness attached to them.

Just as she felt herself moving she was still. The light that once shown was gone and she found herself in a desolate darkness. She looked forward and an almost invisible curtain hung loosely in front of her. She squinted to see past it and saw that just beyond was the beauty of the hills and the faces of the ones she loved. She desperately tried to reach through the veil but found she was chained to the darkness.

Fire began to rage all around her and the heat and smoke made her lungs scream. She fought her mind to release her from the nightmare but the evil surrounding her had a grip and refused her any control.

She tried to yell out but even her voice failed. Her body became weaker and her head densely heavy. She turned her focus to the one task of prying her eyes open.

Slowly the curtain began to lift and with a final surge she found success. The first thing she saw was the whiteness that surrounded her. She struggled to focus and slowly she became aware of herself. In her confusion Emily was unsure why she still felt so drowsy and unable to move. Pain was dull and distance and the light blanket over her felt like a lead weight that held her down. Her arms would not respond to her commands and her head remained plastered to the pillow.

In her desperation Emily searched out for any comfort that she could hold onto. As the helplessness and the emptiness began to consume her it was quickly washed away when she met the concerned blue eyes that quickly appeared over her. She stared into them and tried to speak but her dry mouth and sore throat refused her again.

The blue eyes spoke softly to her, "don't try to speak."

But that was all she wanted to do.

Panic and fear once again dug their claws into her and she lost the final strand of control she had. An angry beeping filled the room and pounded in her head. Her only comfort was yanked from her and unknown eyes and words replaced it. She tried to resist but a warm sensation flowed into her arm and slowly filled her.

The overwhelming urge to sleep seeped through her body and her eyes began to fall. Emily's body had begun to rebel against her mind as she tried to fight the inevitable. She wanted to stay awake with what seemed more familiar but her consciousness continued to slip. The drugs were persistent in taking her and held her in a vise like grip. Despite the deep sleep she knew was coming, the nightmares would find her.

* * *

><p><em>Okay so this is the point in my stories I get stuck, so I'm going to throw it out there with what you might want to see. I already have a chapter written of the much needed conversation between JJ and Emily but it takes place 6-8 weeks after the hospital. I was going to jump right to that scene, but I am open to suggestions!<em>

_Thank you for reading and staying with the story! Don't forget to tell me what you thought of the chapter!_


	17. Chapter 17

_Thank you for the alerts favs and comments. I appreciate the time taken to let me know your opinion! I actually agree that jumping was a little too soon. So heres a bit more angst. ;)_

_Happy reading! Don't forget to comment and tell me your thoughts after you've read the chapter!_

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><p>Emily stared blankly at the shadows that moved in front of her as the late afternoon sun fought the partially closed blinds to make itself known. The simple transition from the bed to the wheel chair had exhausted her and she fought to keep her eyes open. The pain medication made Emily's head feel disconnected from her body but the heaviness and burn in her chest was ever present. The medication only dulled the throbbing and sharp pains that emanated from her shoulder. She began to wonder if the pain was a better option over the fog that floated through her mind.<p>

The last week had been a blur of activity that she felt nothing more than an observer to. She dreaded sleep but she felt that was all she wanted to do. Emily's voice still refused to cooperate fully and the little she said meant nothing to what she was really feeling. She fought the frustration that none of the medical staff really tried to understand what she wanted or needed.

The only comfort she found was when the familiar faces of her family sat with her and spoke to her or simply interacted with each other. There was warmth in the room when the team was there, and it was the only time she felt she could sleep and not be overwhelmed with nightmares. Emily knew it would not last and after a few days they had said their regret filled goodbyes. All she could do was reassure them she was fine and okay with it, whether she really was or not. She knew that Strauss would be impatient at not having the finest BAU team at her disposal.

Her memory was broken when JJ slid into the doorway. Emily noticed how much her swelling and bruising had gone down but she still looked beyond exhausted. She could only imagine how little sleep she had gotten in the last week. Emily felt a pang of guilt to the woman that refused to leave and go to the hotel, or sleep anywhere but on a cot that was finally brought in. The guilt became worse when she realized that her staying meant missing Henry for a week more than should have been necessary. She tried to beg her to leave with the rest of the team but only ran into a wall of resistance.

JJ lifted a brown bag and some papers. "Got a refill on all your meds and a list of doctors and physical therapists in DC. Garcia already looked into them and pulled the names of the absolute best we can check out."

"That's great." Emily whispered with an appreciative smile.

"It's a pretty long drive to the airport." JJ apologized as she moved behind her to grasp the handles of the chair.

"As long as we're leaving."

JJ laughed in agreement and propelled the wheelchair towards the exit.

Once situated Emily lightly leaned her head against the headrest and even though her eyes drooped she knew that any real sleep was an impossible dream. There would not be a comfortable position she could find in the car and she was sure the jet held the same dilemma. She resigned to the fact and closed her eyes anyway.

* * *

><p>After JJ made sure Emily was as comfortable as possible in the seat she excused herself to talk to the pilot and see why they had not taken off yet. After a few minutes of conversation she moved to rejoin the brunette. She found herself surprised that Emily was still awake despite her obvious exhausted demeanor.<p>

"The pilot says there is a nasty storm over the Appalachians, but thinks we'll miss it if we wait it out a little longer."

Emily raised her eyebrow but smiled softly before she slowly turned her head away.

As much as JJ was happy to be going home she was not completely sure Emily was ready. She still was lethargic and most of the days were spent in and out of sleep, but was constantly reassured it was the pain medication that made her so drowsy. She just didn't like the lack of response she got from the brunette. Even when everyone was there she barely spoke or engaged more than a casual smile or word. When Strauss pulled the team back JJ refused to leave her alone in an unknown place. She witnessed one too many of her nightmares and in no way was abandoning her, again.

A myriad of topics she wanted to talk about ran through her mind but she struggled to find the right moment to start bringing them up. She knew it was too soon but her mind would drift back to everything that had been unresolved and it continued to eat at her. She began to doubt if there would ever be a right moment.

She took another glance to her friend but her eyes were sealed. She knew Prentiss was not asleep; she looked as though she was just trying to maintain a shred of control. She decided to close her own eyes briefly, and opened when the jet began to move. It wasn't long before they were cruising and JJ let out a sigh of relief knowing they were getting closer to home.

JJ leaned her head back and watched the sea of clouds as they soared over them. An explosion of reds and oranges streaked across the horizon and lit up the sky as the sun made its descent. While she took in the beauty she drew in a breath and slowly released it to allow the anxiety and guilt that clung to her go with it. It helped momentarily and she closed her eyes to try again but jumped when an unexpected voice broke her meditation.

"Can I ask you a question?"

JJ looked over then sat up a little straighter to prepare for the inquiry. "Sure, of course."

"Why did you say _we_?"

"When?"

"Back at the hospital. You said _we_ when you spoke about doctors appointments."

"Oh." JJ gave a slight laugh relieved at the question. "I just don't want you to think you're taking all of this on by yourself. As much as you want to its not happening."

Emily shook her head and looked out the window briefly then brought only her eyes back to the blonde as she continued.

"Hotch said I could take another week if I need it."

Emily adjusted herself to fully face JJ. She kept her voice low and steady but firm. "And you need to spend that time with Henry and Will."

She paused and her eyes became softer with the emotions that had begun to fill them. "Jayje, I don't think I could explain how much I truly appreciate you staying with me while I was in the hospital, but it doesn't feel right you being kept from your family."

JJ smiled sensitively before she responded. "I think we all know you well enough to understand your independence and stubbornness, we just want to be there for you. All I was thinking was staying for the first few days so you can get adjusted."

Emily stiffened in the chair almost uncomfortable at JJ's words, and she moved a few errand strands of her coal black hair behind her ears. Her features closed down and she spoke in a serious tone.

"The doctor said that I should be able to dress myself, and without that bulky dressing I can shower. So I'm not sure what else there is."

The two continued to stare and an uncertain silence stretched between them. JJ chose to conceit not wanting to push anything or upset Emily more.

She shrugged as she responded quietly, "I guess nothing, you're right."

JJ knew that this resistance was expected, but she was hoping it hadn't come so harshly. The doctor had said it would be at least six weeks before she would be released to return to even lite duty. She knew Emily would go stir crazy in that time, and not to be able to do it all when she could come back would just add salt to the wound.

She wanted to blame the blunt answers on the fatigue, pain medication or the pain itself, she just wasn't sure. All her guilt that she felt for Emily even being in the position continued to tear at her, and more than ever that she wanted to make sure she didn't drift away. She hoped the reaction she was getting was temporary and she'd eventually accept the help.

Emily excused herself and began to stand. As she pushed herself up she faltered slightly and barely caught herself on the edge of the seat. She let out a small hiss of pain and JJ quickly leaned over to give any assistance she could.

Emily tired to pull away and distant shadows filled her eyes. "Please, don't. I've felt helpless enough with the nurses having to do practically everything for me the last week. If you want to help me, don't baby me."

JJ recoiled in shock and bit back a response and watched as Emily finished righting herself. Her face grew pale and uncertain, but she turned her eyes away and slowly shuffled to the back of the plane. JJ was thrown off with what had just happened and not sure what to do about it. The pit in her stomach began to grow and she closed her eyes again to try and find a calm center.

When Prentiss finally returned she looked everywhere but to JJ. It was more than clear that the conversation was over and no more words were to be given or taken. JJ tried unsuccessfully to recapture Emily's gaze but was met with failure. She swallowed her doubt and rose to regain some of herself. She decided she'd create the task of getting tea to clear her mind, and give Emily some distance in hopes that it might resolve some of the tension that filled the small space.

JJ poured the steaming water over the teabag that hung to the inside of the mug. As she let the tea steep she stole a few glances to Emily. The recent conversation tumbled through her mind and she tried unsuccessfully to not to let the growing distance she felt really affect to her.

The first jolt almost made JJ spill the boiling liquid and she quickly steadied the cup to avoid the burning splash. A flash of light brightened the dimly lit cabin as they hit another pocket of air. The seatbelt sign came on and the pilot asked them to take a seat as they navigated the rough patch. JJ abandoned the hot beverage and zigzagged to the seat that was across from Prentiss and fastened herself in. She sent a reassuring smile to Emily but it was not returned. It was apparent all of her energy had gone to control the pain that the jerking movements caused.

The turbulence became more violent and the raging storm threw the small jet around like a toy. The apologetic voice of the pilot crackled overhead. He began to reassure the two agents but a sudden nosedive stole away all confidence.

JJ felt her stomach in her throat and the feeling of the most adrenaline pumping rollercoasters didn't touch the sensation created by of the rapidly descending aircraft. She kept her eyes forward and tried to find Emily's for support. The dark brown eyes she needed to see were tightly sealed, and the agony she was experiencing was written all over her face.

Within seconds the jet righted itself and the pilot was back once again with anxious apologies and promises of a smooth journey the rest of he way. JJ drew in a few short breaths in an attempt to calm down and control her erratic heat beat. She was drawn away from herself when Emily's low voice caught her attention.

"I'm over near death experiences."

The words were barely above a whisper but the meaning was not lost on JJ. The guilt raged through her again as she couldn't help but feel as if the statement was directed at her. JJ needed to know where they really stood and tried to draw the brunette back into a conversation, but Emily kept her eyes glued to the darkness that was just beyond the small window.

By the time JJ had built up any nerve to say something they had landed and were coming to a stop.

JJ kept herself close behind Emily as she moved slowly down the aisle and towards the opened hatch. She was respectful to what the brunette had made clear earlier, but she still had concerns and was not going to let the woman do it all by herself. She was consumed with helping Emily navigate the stairs that she had not seen Morgan appear in front of them.

"Whoa there Princess not so fast." He said as he coached Emily down.

Prentiss stiffened at his words but kept moving.

"Morgan, what are you doing here?" JJ asked and made no effort to hold back the edge that pierced her voice.

He extended his arm and linked it with Emily's and spoke over her and back to JJ. "I thought you'd be tired and want to get home. Prentiss' place is out of the way for you, I just thought I'd help."

"I've got it covered." She hissed.

Morgan stopped moving and turned to confront the obviously irritated blonde.

"Its not a problem JJ, take her home. I was just trying to be respectful to you and your family by helping out."

JJ did not respond immediately and struggled to compose herself. The rollercoaster of emotions were taking their toll and the flight itself had been the last straw.

"Do what ever you want Derek."

The two were silenced when Emily spoke up harshly, "I just want to get the fuck home so if both of you don't mind you can argue like children some other time."

JJ raised a shoulder and a brow in response to Morgan and moved to grab their bags. When she caught up to the two agents, Emily was already in the car, and Morgan stood at the trunk waiting patiently for JJ to give Emily's go bag.

"JJ-" he began but she was not interested in any conversation and shook her head to stop his words.

"Get her home safe okay?"

"I will." He said softly as he watched her swiftly retreat.

When he slid into the car Emily had her head turned away, but he planned to engage her in hopes to get a read on how she was doing.

"How was the flight?"

"Eventful, " she responded sarcastically.

"Really? How so?"

But he was met with a strained silence, and quickly decided to let the drive keep the quiet she obviously craved.

He wasn't fully prepared for who would be coming home, and the woman he left broken in the hospital was still slowly mending. He had made the decision right then that she was not going to be left alone.

"Thanks for the ride." She whispered as they entered her apartment.

"Of course. So where are we headed?"

Emily froze and her whole body tensed. She slowly spun around and made sure their eyes meet.

"Morgan, _I'm_ going to bed. Again, thank you for the ride, just make sure you lock the door when you leave. Please."

Morgan did not waiver and smiled widely. "Oh, I'm not going anywhere Princess."

His grin faded when he saw the darkness that filled her eyes, "Morgan, please."

He nodded and watched her fade into her room. He stood rooted in his spot and listened to her as she navigated around. When there was nothing but silence he lightly stepped to check on her. He pushed the door open and glanced to her bed. He smiled in satisfaction to see her chest rise and fall in a quiet rhythm. Sergio was tucked up tightly to her but had his protective eyes opened and gave Derek a warning glare.

Morgan gently closed the door and moved to the living room. He stretched himself out on her sofa and closed his eyes. He'd happily deal with the wrath of Prentiss in the morning just for his peace of mind that she was okay.

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><p><em>No evil cliff hanger? Wait, what? Well, the wrath of Emily Prentiss may be a bit of one!<em>

_Thank you again for reading! Please let me know what you think!_


	18. Chapter 18

_Thanks for reading and the continual support! Hope this chapter pleases! As always feedback is greatly appreciated and motivating! _

_Happy reading!_

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><p>A sudden burst of light snapped Morgan out of his sleep. The attack continued when Sergio leaped onto his chest. The abrupt and unexpected weight caused Derek to release a grunt from the air that was pushed out. He attempted to adjust to the startling assault. He squinted to see past the black fur and glaring sunlight that blocked his view of the fleeing assailant. Her silhouetted form disappeared from his eye line just as quickly as she was there.<p>

He slowly sat up and Sergio unwillingly slipped down to his lap. Derek put a hand under the belly of the defiant cat and moved him to the far cushion. The feline responded with an irritated hiss and gracefully bounded onto the floor. He glanced once more to Derek before he raised his tail and trotted away to catch up to Emily.

Derek sat on the edge of the sofa and continued to force his mind into the present. He stretched and rubbed the back of his neck, but cringed as he listened to the commotion that was happening in the other room. Drawers and cabinet were opened and then slammed. Water ran and hushed cursing came from the brunette.

As he rose he reached for his phone and saw he had two new texts. One was from JJ asking how Emily was when he had left her. The other was from Hotch informing him of his meeting time with Strauss. He noted them but would respond after he spoke to Prentiss.

He paused in the doorway to watch as Emily moved around the small kitchen. Her hair was still damp from a shower, and she was dressed in a pair of baggy gray sweats with a navy blue FBI tee shirt. The ever-present sling confined her left arm against her chest, yet she appeared to work effectively with one arm.

"Sleep well?" She asked coolly without turning around.

"Okay, you?"

When she didn't respond he attempted to keep her engaged in some conversation.

"It must have been nice to shower."

"Yup, and I did it all by myself. Just like a big girl." She said through clenched teeth.

"Emily-"

"Do you want coffee?" She asked abruptly her back still turned to him.

"Sure." He answered tentatively and moved a little further into the room.

She felt cold and distant as she busied herself with trying to turn on the coffee machine. He looked around and saw the empty box that had recently held the single cup brewer.

"I wasn't expecting company, but had to pull it out eventually, I guess." She said when she saw that he was looking at the box on the floor.

"Do you need help?" The words came out and he immediately tried to swallow them, but it was too late.

Her hand slapped the counter then she spun around and glared at him. "Its just coffee."

She turned back and continued to push the buttons and readjust the holder for the small pod of coffee. Her antics would almost be amusing if the situation had not been so serious.

"Don't worry about it." He said in hopes to get past the unease that weighed them down.

"You want coffee." She replied plainly. "This machine can't be that difficult to figure out. I don't know why my mother got me one, she knows I don't drink it anymore."

"They do make teas and chocolate for it." He said in an attempt to be encouraging.

He tried not to flinch when her dark eyes pierced him. She then moved an unopened box that held a variety of teas and coffees, specifically made for the machine, into view. He nodded and sealed his lips to refrain from any more unnecessary comments.

After another minute of watching her struggle he finally had enough and walked over. He silently reached around her, and she tensed immediately. He ignored her reaction and pulled the plug from behind the small machine. He pushed it into the outlet, and instantly it began to hum as it circulated and heated the water to prepare it to be filter through the coffee.

Emily dropped her arm in defeat and turned away.

"Hey, where are you going?"

"Back to bed."

"Oh come on its not a big deal."

She sighed heavily and faced Derek. "Sugar and sweeter are on the counter."

She then nodded towards the fridge before she continued to distance herself. "I don't have any milk or creamer."

"Don't walk away, please."

She twisted slightly to face him and her voice was as closed off as her eyes. "Derek, I don't want to do this right now. For once try to respect one thing that I ask of you."

When he did not respond she turned again and he reluctantly watched the door shut behind her. He leaned against the counter and let his hands settle on the smooth edge and squeezed. He realized too late that both of their stubbornness had created an unwanted rift.

As he contemplated his move his phone vibrated in his pocket and took a quick look before he made a decision to what he needed to do.

_Meeting moved up 0900_

He glanced at his watch and saw he only had forty-five minutes before he needed to be in the Section Chiefs office. He knew that was not enough time to even touch what he wanted to say to Emily. It was clear by how she responded to him that the smart move would be to just leave, but it gnawed at him too much to just walk away.

He took the chance and hesitantly walked to her bedroom door. He rapped lightly and at the same time slowly pushed it open. He didn't see her at first as his eyes tried to adjust to the darker room. Weak light filtered in from the drawn curtains and it barely touched her. She was a shadow sitting on the edge of the bed, facing the window almost completely motionless. She did not react to his entry, and he moved to capture her attention.

"Emily?"

He wanted to see her face, but she rolled her head away, and failed to hide the tears; the dim light glistened off them as they fell.

"Look at me, please." Morgan pleaded.

She refused until he was directly in front of her, and raised her eyes to him. As he silently studied her he saw the mixture of powerful and complex emotions that ran through her. The shadows were dark and hard on her face, but he could see, from the small glint of light that hit them, that her eyes were soft.

"I completely understand you being upset but-"

"Don't."

"Emily-"

"Don't, please." She said again with persistence.

He held his words and wanted to turn away but he couldn't.

"Just listen then."

She released an irritated sigh but did not verbally respond.

"Please."

When she did not protest he spoke. "We all know you, and understand how hard it is to let us in and help. You can be mad at me for staying that's fine, but I'm not going anywhere. No one is, and you're going to have to face it eventually."

He crossed his arms and began to feel restless to her resistance.

"If you don't talk to me, please at least talk to JayJe. More than anything you need to listen to her, understand that she needs to heal too. The last month has been hell for her. Until she is able to comprehend what happened, and where you stand she won't be able to move on."

He held his breath as he watched her, but could not get a full read on her emotional response. She did close her eyes and sat up straighter. These actions at least let him know that she heard him. He was almost caught off guard when she suddenly spoke, and it was as if she didn't release the words she never would.

"I don't remember anything."

He could see the battle raging in her to remain composed, and he knelt down to hold her attention at eye level.

"What happened out there doesn't really matter. What does is that you're here, that we're all here. We made it out."

She laughed lightly, and when she spoke again her voice had lowered. "My dreams are so vivid I don't know what's real and what's not."

She then paused to collect herself, and she continued before he could interject. "It scares me."

Her words came out barely above a whisper but they pounded into him. He leaned in closer to fully engage when a knock on the door drew their attention away. Derek saw in that instant that she had drifted back to the shelter her mind made for her. His chance was lost, her pain once again was securely locked away, and her impenetrable walls would now refuse him access.

He tried to hold his own emotions as he felt them rise. Another more forceful knock put him in motion, and he moved with his irritation. He had been so close to something real and that opportunity was swiftly taken away.

He put his hand up when Emily began to rise. "No, I'll get it."

She pushed herself up anyway and moved around him. "Its fine, its JayJe."

"How do you know?"

"Because she text me earlier and said she wanted to come over."

"Oh." He responded quietly and then led the way to the front door.

He released the bolt and turned the knob. As he opened the door fully he was met with a face of shock that quickly flashed anger.

"Derek." She said with a fire that clung to the end of his name.

He didn't know what she would do. The air was already uncomfortable and nerve-racking. Now, here JJ was surprised he was there and it obviously put her on edge. He had felt the tension from her at the airport but shook it off as a build up of all that happened and the long flight. It was clear that was not completely the case.

She held herself under a tight control but looked as though she was fighting her response. He wasn't sure if she wanted to yell or start swinging, but in the end her eyes told her story and she moved passed him.

Her voice became soft again when she turned her attention to Emily. She raised a small bag that she had clenched in her hand. "I brought some bagels and muffins."

"Thanks Jayje, but I really don't have much of an appetite right now."

"I don't blame you," she said still facing Emily, but clearly directed her words to Morgan.

"You got something to say?" He finally asked.

The blonde stopped and spun on her heels.

"At the moment no."

"Come on JayJe something has been bugging you since last night, so just say it."

She moved closer and set the bag on the small table that was pressed up against the wall. She remained behind it to create a small barrier between the two of them.

"Okay Derek, you're an expert profiler yet you continually ignore the behavior in front of you when it doesn't suit what you want."

"What is that suppose to mean?"

"Don't act like you don't see that sometimes your actions are more hurtful than helpful."

Derek dropped his head and felt the irritation that already hovered on the surface bubble up more. He didn't want to argue. His intentions were not being taken as he needed them to be. He slowly drew in a breath to compose himself but wasn't about to back down.

He brought his eyes back to her before he spoke. "I get what's been going on with you and I've been trying to help but you're not much better."

JJ was in full battle mode and the fire in her eyes was not about to be extinguished. "You can't be the one that fixes everything."

"What is wrong with making sure everyone is okay?"

"Nothing, but maybe you should think outside yourself once in a while."

His steady voice began to rise with his frustration. "That's all I do, and if you stopped for a second you might just see that."

JJ's lips creased and her scowl deepened, but he had thrown the gloves off. "I've tried, we all have, to been respectful to you as you worked through your guilt or whatever it is you are letting drag you down."

"Morgan-" she warned but he didn't let her finish.

"No, you need to listen!"

He had burst and now all that had happened since he woke came to a head and he was done holding back. "You don't think we have seen what's happening with you? And yes its understandable, but I was there too, so was Hotch, and the rest of the team. We all have feelings about this, it's about dealing with them."

He watched the words hit JJ and she flinched slightly, but tensed as she prepared herself to return fire. The air grew heavy with the silence that stretched between them.

Emily stood behind the two in a mixture of shock and disappointment. As much as she wanted to appreciate the obvious concern both of them had for her, and each other, the bickering was more that she could take at the moment. The small hallway that held the three agents began to creep in on her, and the raised voices and harsh words hammered in her head. She backed out slowly and silently removed herself from the turmoil that swirled only feet from her.

The two arguing had not seen her retreat until Derek looked past the blonde and saw the vacant space that Emily had occupied.

Both froze as the realization of what happened hit them.

"Damn." He cursed to himself.

He looked at his watch and frowned, he was already late, but Strauss wasn't a concern right then. He reached out and found the edge of the door. The silence and apologetic eyes he got from JJ were his answer for the moment. There was so much more to say but didn't know how to say it. He gripped the wood tighter as he fought the uncertainty, and he couldn't help that it this forced parting would only allow the words to fester. He saw the darkness that hung over both of the woman and his protective instincts took hold. He was determined now more then ever to lift it.

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><p>After the door shut JJ moved to find Emily. Her stomach turned at the recent events, nothing had happened as it should. She had hoped Emily would have gotten the rest she needed, and for it to be on her terms like she had adamantly requested. The minute JJ saw Derek open the door she knew it had not happen. She felt some guilt for being so harsh but he chose not to listen. As hard as it was for her to accept it she knew that pushing Emily would only result in her pushing back with stronger resistance.<p>

She found Emily sitting on her sofa mindlessly stroking Sergio. He was stretched out on his side and his legs pressed against hers. His front paws moved rhythmically as he kneaded the gray cotton. A soft purr emanated from him and was the only sound that filled the room.

JJ tried to swallow the lump that had formed again. "I should leave too, I'm sorry."

Emily tilted her head back and JJ saw an unnerving distance in her dark eyes.

"You don't have to, but this is all a little too much right now. I really wasn't prepared for this."

"I understand, and I'm sorry for my reaction."

Emily didn't respond but gave a slight smile of acceptance.

"We'll talk later?"

"Sure." She whispered as she returned to her original position. Her hand went back to the task of petting Sergio who had repeatedly voice his impatience for her to continue.

JJ lingered for a moment and silently hoped for Emily to change her mind. But when the brunette did not move she backed out of the room. As she shut the door behind herself she held the knob tightly stuck in a mental battle. She could not help but somehow think that Emily's promise was a lie. Everything felt like it was constantly slipping away. There was too much to deal with for JJ not to hold her to it, but chances were continually lost, and she could not deny her doubt.

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><p><em>I promise there will be closure. Only a couple more chapters to endure! Thanks again for reading! If you have a minute drop me a line to let me know what you think of the chapter and the story!<em>


	19. Chapter 19

_I want to first apologize for posting then taking down the chapter. I felt it was rushed and just settled with what I had. After a few comments and PM's from you wonderful readers I realized that the purpose of the chapter was not taken as I had originally planned, and the issues I had about it were glaring. So think of this as a revamped better version. ;) _

_I appreciate the feedback and those who commented on the last version. Good news is it should only be a day or two until the next chapter! Really!_

_Thanks for hanging in and hope I still have you! Oh and a side note I've added a little Beyond Belief Easter Egg in the chapter..can you spot it? Virtual cookies for you if you do! ;)_

_Happy reading!_

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><p>Emily let out a forceful sigh and pushed her head deeper into the pillows that supported her. Her eyes lazily drifted to the clock on the wall, but she really had no concern to the actual time. The days continued to slip by, but found she didn't seem to care about them either. They had become a series of dark unforgiving nightmares that left her with a grotesque pitted feeling that stole any desire to eat. The vicious cycle started over when the lingering pain pushed her to want to just sleep through it all.<p>

She was fully aware that it was not a healthy situation but held onto the fact that she'd eventually get passed it. Her tumultuous past was a clear reminder that what she was dealing with was nothing in comparison to what she has endured.

Her thoughts were distracted when her phone began to bounce around on the nightstand. She stared at it and saw it as more of an annoyance than anything she needed to respond to. She waited for the typical beep to come that signaled a voicemail, but when it immediately began to vibrate again she gave in and slowly rose to look to see who was being so persistent.

She moved with caution in an effort not to invoke any unnecessary pain. No matter how bad the waves of pain were she resisted in taking the medication. She chose to fight the agony mentally and found that each day it did lessen.

After making it to a fully upright position she turned to let her feet fall over the edge of the bed. She sat motionless to adapt herself to the new position and stared at the window to help focus. The phone interrupted her drifting mind again and was reminded to why she was getting out of bed in the first place. She leaned over and picked up the device and was not surprised to see JJ's name.

She drew in a breath and answered with some hesitation. It had at been over a week since the argument between JJ and Morgan in her entryway. She wasn't upset but was not interested in dealing with it, and she kept the conversations she did have with the two under her control. She really had no desire to burden her friends when she knew they had their own struggles to deal with.

She tried to keep her voice gentle and controlled as she answered. "Well now, I'm feeling important. Three consecutive calls in a row."

"Cute." JJ quipped. "I figured if I just blew up your phone you'd eventually answer to get me to stop."

"That's not entirely true, I was about to throw it across the room to shut it up."

JJ chuckled and Emily was glad to no longer feel the tension that hung in the blonde's voice. "I was calling to see if you needed a ride to your appointment tomorrow."

Emily paused and was slightly confused that she knew about her appointment but quickly remembered she had Garcia make them all for her.

"Sure."

"Okay good! I'll be there at eight then."

There was an awkward silence before JJ spoke again. "Everything going okay?"

"It's great, yeah." Emily expertly lied, but had a hunch JJ saw through her words when there wasn't a response right away.

She spoke up quickly before JJ could call her out. "You good?"

"Yeah, been busy trying to catch up with everything, at work and home."

"JayJe if you're busy-"

"Nope, nice try. I've got it under control. I'll be there at eight."

Emily rolled her eyes but kept her voice light, "okay, see you in the morning."

When she hung up she was ready to lie back down when an unexpected knock pulled her out of the room.

"What is this Grand Central?" She huffed as she stood and wrapped her robe around herself. She pushed her right arm through the sleeve the pulled the other side around her sling and tucked it in place. She walked unsteadily down the hall and paused at the door.

When she looked through the peephole she was shocked to see Hotch standing patiently on the other side. She swallowed and tried to stand up straighter as she unlatched the door to let him in.

"Sir?"

"Prentiss." He said with a smile.

Emily nodded and smiled back but continued to stare at Aaron.

He shifted his weight in front of her. "May I come in?"

"Oh yes, of course, I'm sorry." She apologized and widened the door to allow him access.

She led him into the living room. "Can I get you anything?" She then looked past him to the kitchen. "Not that I really have anything."

"No, actually I figured you wouldn't so I brought you a light lunch." He said and lifted a small brown bag that she had not noticed when he walked in.

She followed him as he moved to the bar and set the bag down to open it. "I wasn't sure how you've been feeling so I got a grilled cheese and a small cup of chicken noodle. It's Jacks favorite when he's not feeling well."

Emily couldn't help but let out a small chuckle, "That's uh sweet, but I'm really not hungry."

"Indulge me please." He said and pushed the small container that held the soup and the wrapped sandwich across the bar to a spot next to him.

She sighed slightly but joined him and unwrapped the parchment that was around the sandwich, and moved it to the side. When she lifted the flimsy plastic lid from the Styrofoam bowl she couldn't avoid the aroma of the broth, and a sudden wave of hunger overwhelmed her. She refrained from indulging in the desire to devour the soup and sandwich, and instead picked at a small corner of the bread.

"So what can I do for you?" She asked as she nibbled on the toasted crust.

His eyes softened and showed his concern. "I wanted to come by and see how you're doing."

Emily swallowed hard but held herself strong. She shrugged and gave him a half smile. "Getting better everyday."

He tilted his head but accepted her answer. "It's good to see you up and around."

"Thanks."

"Is there anything you need?" He asked as he looked around the kitchen.

"Nope, all good."

He squinted his eyes at her response, and she felt there was an ulterior motive to his unannounced visit and got right to it. "So are you going to tell me why you really came by?"

He placed his palm on the bar and ran it along the smooth surface. "Honestly to see how you are. I hadn't seen you since we left you at the hospital."

"We spoke yesterday."

"No, actually we spoke briefly Monday, it's now Thursday."

She shrugged again and picked at another piece of the bread, "if you say so."

Aaron sank his hands into his pockets and then moved around the bar. He paused when he was directly across from her. "Look, I know that you have a hard time with these personal conversations, and you feel the need to help everyone else through their issue, but you can't use it to run away from yours."

"I'm not."

"Emily," he said with disbelief and his brow narrowed again.

She set the piece of bread and cheese she had torn off down and wiped her hand on the small paper napkin. As she performed the small task she responded dryly. "I don't remember anything, so I really have no issues."

"Well," he mimicked her tone and crossed his arms. "When you do remember, just understand that JayJe, Morgan and I were there and can recall everything quite clearly. You have to understand that we're here if you need anything."

Emily stiffened but nodded in acceptance. She could feel herself losing the battle to control her emotions and had to look away from the man in front of her. She felt her cheeks grow hot as his piercing stare bore into her. She only looked back when his voice came across softer than it had before.

"It's a simple request, Emily. Please let us help and not push us away."

"Okay." She conceited and let their eyes remained locked until she knew he believed her.

He smiled and his brow released its tension. "I'll leave so you can really eat. We'll talk again next week, okay?"

"Sure," she whispered as she led him to the door.

Emily couldn't help but release a heavy sigh as the door latched shut. It was a simple request on the surface, but to actually do it was going to be extremely difficult. It was so much easier to ease her pain by absorbing the pain of others, but that wasn't going to be a solution this time. She had to come up with a plan that didn't include evasion and deterrence, but getting past that comfort zone was more than a challenge.

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><p>Penelope bounced her way up the stairwell. Once she reached the landing she turned towards her destination and her smile grew with each step. As she strolled down the hallway she adjusted the handles of the bags she carried eager to initiate her plan. When she arrived at Emily's door she hesitated for a second and listened to see if she could hear anything on the other side. She frowned slightly that there was nothing, no music or even the TV coming through. She reached up and knocked on the wood in front of her, and smiled again to herself as she waited.<p>

She gave Emily a fair amount of time, as she expected her to move slowly, but knocked a little harder again for good measure.

Slowly the door was opened and an exhausted and pale woman that Penelope almost didn't recognize stood in front of her. Her heart dropped and stomach clenched, but she adjusted to her shock and swallowed quickly to bring the pep back.

She couldn't control the emotional crack in her voice as she announced the reason for her visit. "Dinner and a movie my love!"

"Thanks Pen, but I-"

"Oh no, no." She chirped as she made her way into the entry. She held an enthusiastic smile directed towards Emily, then moved passed her. She sang over her shoulder as she floated through the apartment. "This is happening and you are going to love every minute of it."

Emily rolled her eyes but couldn't help but smile at the spirited soul and the effortless sunshine she added to the room. She followed her into the kitchen and didn't say a word as Garcia hummed to herself and busied her hands with the bags she carried in.

When she saw Emily come through she presented the DVD she had in one of the bags. "Pretty Woman."

"Really Garcia? It's about a hooker that gets the ultimate John."

"Oh where is your sense of romance? It's a modern fairy tale! And Richard Gere!" She said with a wink.

Emily only creased her lips in conceit, and looked down.

Penelope stared at the brunette and felt the unease at her state rise again. Before her stood a woman that has always held herself so strong, but now she looked like nothing more than a shell. The spark that had always flashed in her eyes had faded and the smile that once lit up the room now only occasionally crept onto her face.

"When was the last time you ate?" She asked with concern.

Emily shrugged and moved around the island and watched the analyst unpack the groceries.

"Well, hold on cause I'm about to make you the most amazing dinner." Penelope lifted a few ingredients and presented them to her. "Pumpkin ravioli in a sherry cream sauce, and tofu with balsamic roasted Italian veggies. "

Emily stood wide-eyed and held a half smile but did not give a verbal response.

At this Garcia straightened up and glared accusingly at her. "Emily Prentiss, you did not just give me present face! This is about to be the most mind-blowing meal you have ever had!"

Emily could only smile at her reaction and reached out for the bottle that was set in front of her. "Sounds great especially paired with," she let out a chuckle as she read the label, "sparkling cider?"

"I didn't know if you could drink. The pain meds and all, plus the apple cider compliments the ravioli and vegies perfectly."

Garcia then came around and put a gentle hand on Emily to turn her around. "Now you need to go sit down and relax."

"Pen-"

"Nope, we will have none of that. There is no talking your way out of it!"

Emily gave in and did not resist the direction she was led. The day had been exhausting; even if all she did was get out of bed and shower. The conversation she had with Hotch only days earlier continued to weigh heavily on her. She did see that this meal would be a good step to allowing her family in a little, but their surprise attacks didn't fully allow the events to be on her terms. She accepted their attempt to reach out only because she would do the same thing for them.

As they ate Emily found herself surprised by the food but she figured it was more the company that made it better.

"You know that was actually pretty good." Emily commented as she watched Garcia clear the table.

"Pretty good?" She waved the empty plates in the air. "That was outstanding, remarkable, incredible, shall I go on?"

Emily shook her head with a smile and mouthed her response. "No."

Penelope laughed and pointed to the couch, "Now go while I clean up."

Emily didn't argue with the demand and as she leaned against the cushions she felt her eyes become heavy. She had not realized she had dosed off until she was jolted awake by Garcia's sudden presence.

Penelope stopped when she saw she had startled her, "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Emily responded and then followed her cautious movements to set up the movie.

Once she was satisfied Garcia pushed a small ottoman towards the brunette. "Feet up."

Emily complied but leaned forward to grasp her attention. "Garcia to be completely honest, I'm tired and don't think I will make it through the movie."

"Oh you don't have to. You can fall asleep right here if you want, just know I 'm not leaving until Richard Gere shows up with his bouquet of flowers hanging out of his limo."

"That's fine." She sighed and pushed against the pillow that propped her head up.

Garcia patted her knee and stretched the remote to face the player. "Of course it is."

But she didn't press play and sighed before she lowered her arm and looked over to Emily.

Emily fidgeted uncomfortably when she felt the eyes on her. "What is it?"

"I'm sorry, it's nothing." She apologized and looked away.

"Garcia just say it."

She adjusted her two toned glasses and spoke softly. "Its just, I've been so worried about you."

She then looked away to hide her emotions. "We had lost you already I couldn't handle the idea of losing you again."

Emily listened intently as she spoke and watched her as she toyed with the remote in her hand. When she paused to compose herself Emily tilted her head to grab Penelope's eye.

"I'm okay and will be. It will just take a little time."

Finally she set the remote on her lap. "I really hope so. You have to understand each moment that passed that we didn't know what was happen was excruciating. I felt so helpless." Her voice cracked and she tried to unsuccessfully turn her tone to her natural bubbly cadence. "You really know how to put us through the emotional ringer."

The words hit hard and Emily's eyes grew distant. She looked away as the pain filled them. Penelope wanted to immediately take back what she had said but couldn't help but voice her concern.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean-"

"It's okay." Emily whispered and forced a smiled.

When Garcia didn't respond she reached out to grab her hand. "Really it's fine, let's just watch the movie."

Garcia nodded and her eyes lingered on Emily for a minute before she accepted the conversation was over and moved to press play.

It had not taken long before Garcia realized Emily wasn't lying that she would fall asleep. Emily was virtually motionless and silent next to her. She felt content that her breathing was even and looked comfortable propped up against the pillows.

With a breath she snuggled deeper into the cushions and quickly became drawn into the movie.

Garcia felt her own eyes droop as the movie rolled and the comfortable couch absorbed her. Before her eyes could completely close a burst of movement and a fearful cry shocked her to the present. The ottoman that held Emily's legs had shot out and bounced off the table. Penelope's eyes moved from the small piece of furniture that had rolled to a stop by her feet back to the source of distress. Emily's eyes were wide and unfocused as she searched her surroundings. Her breathing was rapid and she struggled to regain the breath that was lost when whatever she saw or experienced seized it. Penelope felt her own heart begin to race at the dramatic event that had unfolded beside her.

The sudden jerk caused the pain to hit like sharp spikes through Emily's arm and body. Emily quickly tried to recover and fight the horror that still consumed her. She closed her eyes and drew in a few shaky breaths to control the sudden pain and to clear her mind. When reality began to filter in she remembered that Penelope was right next to her. She cringed at the thought that someone had witnessed her in that moment of weakness. She slowly turned her head to face the shock and worried eyes next to her, and the two stared at each other in uncertainty.

Garcia finally spoke up with a quiet hesitance when she realized Emily was not going to engage. "Are you okay?"

Emily just swallowed and nodded slightly.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"No." Emily responded breathlessly and moved herself further up.

"Do you want me to leave?"

"Not at all." She said and shook her head, but kept her eyes away.

"Good cause I wasn't going to." Penelope smirked in an attempt to bring a little light back to the situation and sunk tighter into the couch.

"Good." Emily whispered and laid her head back against the pillow that Garcia had replaced. She kept her eyes forward to avoid the looks she was getting from the analyst and fought her own from closing again. She knew what was held for her and had no desire to revisit the demons that hung in the back of her mind waiting patiently to torment her.

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><p>Morgan emerged from Hotch's office and paused on the catwalk to take in the agents milling around the bullpen. His eyes landed on the woman he was looking for and moved smoothly to her desk. She was about to sit when she caught his eye. As he approached she stood up tall and gave a forced smile.<p>

He returned it and spoke quickly. "Hotch wants us to take a ride down to Richmond for a consult."

"Okay." She said and replaced the chair she had just pulled out.

"One quick stop to Garcia's to get the file."

She creased her lips and briskly moved away. Derek let out a sigh and followed the blonde out the doors and down the hall. He had to jog to keep up with her swift long strides.

The door was open but saw that their spunky Analyst was not at her usual post. JJ crossed her arms and remained in a silent distance as the two waited. Morgan began to feel his irritation rise at her for her continual attitude. The unresolved issue from the week earlier still evident in her behavior.

"You know JayJe, I thought we were past this."

"Past what Derek?" She asked with a sharp clip in her voice.

"You being upset that I stepped on your toes with Prentiss."

She shook her head and looked down. "Please Derek, not everything is about you."

"Then what's with the silence and attitude?"

"I don't expect you to understand."

"I probably understand more than you think. You can't let what ever your hang up is affect how we get along or do our job."

JJ threw her hand up in defense. "I've already had this talk with Hotch. No, I don't need more time off, and no I don't want to talk about it with him or you."

"That's fine, but-"

She quickly interrupted him with her raised voice. "Not now, let's just get the job done."

"Then when?"

She shrugged and turned to face the illuminated board behind her and pretended it held her interest.

"Damn JayJe you can be as stubborn as Emily but not as good at hiding your feelings. You've got something to say to me, so just say it so we can move on."

"Leave it Derek."

"I was there too, remember? We all experienced that hell, you're not alone in it."

"Uh huh. So how you've been acting has nothing to do with your own guilt?"

Derek straightened himself at her redirection. "I get that you were upset at me. You have to understand that I just needed to know she was okay. That's it, nothing else was intended."

When she didn't respond he continued to try and ease the tension. "Don't think I'm not in a constant battle with what could have be done different. You have to see you're projecting and its causing more harm than good."

She only shook her head and turned away again.

He felt his irritation turn to anger and his voice held a hint of his true feelings. "Maybe you do need some more time off to get a grasp of what's really going on because it's clear we can't help you."

"I never asked for anyone's help!" She snapped back with a raised voice.

"Obviously, but you need someone's!" He fired back with a volume and tone that matched hers.

The door suddenly flew open and the woman they had been waiting for charged in with a fire burning in her eyes. She took a look behind her before she closed the door and directed herself to the two battling it out in her space.

"Just hold on!" Penelope scolded. "This is ridiculous! There is no way you two are going to muddle this rooms aura with your black hole of negative energy!"

She inserted herself between the two agents and glared at each of them individually.

"Get over yourselves already! This bickering like kids is- I mean do you hear what you sound like?"

"What are you talking about Garcia?" Derek asked and turned his body towards her.

"Oh my." She said and shook her head flabbergasted at the question. "Just tell me how productive this nonsense is? You two are fighting over the same thing and not realizing that you're both making the same point. We're on the same team here and need to act like it."

"Where is this coming from?" JJ asked looking from Penelope to Derek seeing the same confusion she felt flash across his face.

"Everyone has a right to be upset, I still am!" She said and crossed her arms, and continued to glare at them. "When was the last time either of you saw or spoke to Emily?"

"I took her to physical therapy yesterday." JJ responded and brought her eyes back to Garcia's.

"And?"

JJ threw her hands up with her impatience. "And what Pen? What's your point?"

"That maybe you both need to think about redirecting this focus to helping Emily and not to hinder her further with how you two feel about what happened."

"Yeah but-"

Penelope threw her hands up in a dismissive manner and pushed passed them to get to her desk. "But nothing, fix this now before I knock the both of you into next week."

The two stood in silence as the realization of her words took effect. She lifted the file she had on the desk and handed it to Morgan. She slid past them again to open the door. With a swift movement she grabbed their shoulders and pushed them through the small doorframe. They turned to face her and she smiled brightly at the bewildered agents before she slammed the door.

Morgan blew out a breath and before he could say a word JJ spoke softly, "she's right."

Derek nodded in agreement, "Of course she is. She can really add perspective when it's needed."

"Yeah, I'm sorry." JJ said in defeat.

"Me too." Morgan replied.

The two turned slowly and walked towards the elevator in silence. Both of them in deep contemplation to what they needed to do to proceed in a positive direction.

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><p><em>Please don't hesitate to comment or review. I seriously take the comments into consideration. It really helps me know how the story is perceived.<em>

_Thank you for reading! :)_


	20. Chapter 20

_As promised here is the new chapter! Finally! Thank you for your patience and continued support! Hope you enjoy the chapter!_

_Oh, good job to Shadpup for catching the Beyond Belief reference *CLINK* ;) _

_Happy reading!_

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><p>Emily walked aimlessly through the diffused light of the new dawn. She stopped and stared at the mud and tattered dead leaves that intertwined on the ground. When she lifted her eyes the flickering of a worn neon sign in a window grabbed her attention. The diner that held the sign was nondescript and small; one could almost miss it if not for the lights and appealing aroma of the coffee that filtered out. Her decision was made as she crossed the tiny dirt lot to the opened steel door that was held against the cracked cinder wall. She took the only booth by the window and as she slid into place she breathed in the strong air of the freshly brewed coffee.<p>

She had not felt hungry but she needed a destination to add purpose to her mindless strolling. A waitress set a steaming hot cup in front of her and Emily looked up in curiosity to the young woman. She stood pen in hand with a ready-made smile that was cemented on her face. Emily moved her eyes from the large grey ones that waited patiently for her to order. She didn't respond to the silent request and found herself staring at the plaid sleeves of the woman's uniform and was drawn into the familiar pattern.

"Ma'am?"

Her soft voice broke Emily's daze and she smiled up to the girl. "Coffee is fine, thank you."

The waitress returned a genuine smile and shuffled away. Emily watched her blonde ponytail sway slightly from side to side as she moved across the room to attend to the other customers that had trickled in.

Emily had been so engrossed in watching the waitress that she had not seen the car pull up or the familiar person enter the diner. She drew back slightly as the visitor slipped into the booth and sat across from her.

The woman placed clasped hands gently on the hard surface and looked curiously at Emily. "How's the coffee?"

Emily's eyes were wide with surprise, but still smiled brightly to her. She slowly slid the hot beverage towards her friend. "Why don't you tell me?"

"If you insist." The younger woman grinned and pulled the cup closer before she reached for the cream and sugars. After performing the simple task of preparing the coffee she took a small sip and leaned back to examine the brunette.

"I'm not going to ask how you're doing."

"And I'm not going to ask how you found me." Emily winked teasingly.

"Fair enough, but you have a bit more of an advantage than I do." JJ said with a chuckle.

"Not everyone has a Penelope Garcia." Emily said with a smirk then eased back. "I don't mind that you did, but weren't we meeting for lunch?"

"Yeah, about that, Strauss called a last minute meeting."

Emily raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "We could have rescheduled."

"Yes, but you called me, and I didn't want to pass the opportunity to talk."

"Okay?" Emily adjusted in her spot and peered at JJ in curiosity. "It's not like we haven't seen each other or spoke a few times a week over the last month. After all you insist on taking me everywhere."

"That's not the point. Your definition of talking and mine are completely different."

A brief silence circled around the woman and JJ used the pause to take another sip of the coffee.

"Okay." Emily leaned forward slightly and took a serious tone to engage in the expected conversation. "How are you doing?"

"So, you're allowed to ask me, but I can't ask you?" JJ asked with a raised brow.

Emily pushed back and let out an irritated sigh before she looked out the window. She let herself become distracted by the sun's rays as they glistened off the hood of the car that was tucked up next to the curb.

She blinked quickly to bring herself back to the issue at hand. "Jayje, I don't see how I'm doing is really relevant. Like I have said to everyone else, I don't remember anything."

JJ's sudden desperate voice cut her off, "Emily you almost died."

Emily opened her mouth to speak but JJ continued before she could get a sound out. "Because of me."

Emily had avoided any topic related to what had happened only for her self-preservation and wanted to just let time heal, but it was glaringly evident that JJ was drowning in her guilt. With the revelation she couldn't help but feel a slight relief. This was something she could handle; dealing with JJ's pain would keep the focus from her, and with it she pressed the importance of her words.

"No, I almost died because of Damon Herst."

JJ's head dropped in an unexpected show of defeat, and continued as if Emily had not said anything. "I knew that no matter what I chose it was the wrong decision."

With a deep breath she tried again. "All you could do, and continue to do, is make the best decisions possible."

"Yeah," JJ scoffed, "but when those decisions almost got the people I love killed, how could it not mess with my head?"

"There is no way it wouldn't, but everyone is okay. We all know where your heart is, your intentions would never be to cause harm."

"I get that I do." Her eyes drifted to Emily's left arm then dropped again. "I did cause harm though Em."

"Don't-"

"Don't what?"

Emily's dark eyes held the same intensity as her voice, but broke slightly with subtle emotion. "Don't blame yourself. You can't let anything that happened weigh you down."

JJ nodded silently at the words. She turned her head to follow the waitress as she drifted by. When she spoke up again her words came out in a hushed whisper. "I guess I just need proof that the nightmares aren't real."

Emily's eyes softened more as she captured the blonde's attention. "I'm here to listen if that's what you need."

"I know. I'm sorry, I had no intentions to turn this into a poor me discussion. What I really need to know is about you, how you are doing. Who do you talk to?"

"Sergio." She responded with a sly smile and a wink.

JJ's eyes flashed in irritation to Emily's evasion. "Damn it Emily! Can you be serious for a second please?"

"Oh come on," Emily fired back and resisted rolling her eyes but didn't hide her own frustration, "I'm okay."

"Are you?" JJ's voice became more deliberate and she moved the cup to the side. She then intertwined her fingers and leaned her weight onto the table slightly closing the gap the barrier created. "Be honest, do you not remember because you really can't or just don't want to?"

Emily suddenly felt the layers begin to be peeled away and for the brief moment she was unable to hide the hurt and anguish that she was keeping bottled up. Emily reverted quickly to her survival mode and stalled.

"Why does it matter?"

"Because you matter." JJ answered quickly.

"Then why can't you accept it when I say I'm fine?"

"I get what you do. Telling yourself, and us, that you're fine and actually being fine are two different things."

Emily once again averted her eyes because looking at JJ became too hard. She knew she couldn't hide any longer. Emily just needed it to be on her terms and executed how she had planned. Now there were no more jokes to be told, no more turning of the tables. She was content taking refuge behind her walls. She had safely secured all the tortuous events and pain into her many compartments, but now every time one of them confronted her the locks loosened a little more. Opening them meant facing herself and that scared her more than staring down the worst human beings the world had to offer. She was not ready to face her ghosts, and if she had a choice that time would never come. The look in her friend's eyes told her she was not about to have a say in the matter, and it was going to come to a head in the small cupboard of a diner. Emily just wasn't sure what it was she wanted or more realistically if she really could give it.

Emily moved her eyes to her hand to avoid eye contact and played with the edge of the napkin. Her mind went blank and all she wanted to do was shrink in the seat and disappear.

"Emily?" JJ's voice was soft and concerned but Emily couldn't answer, not yet. She battled with her typical responses and actually attempting to formulate the truth became a task.

When she looked back up to JJ, her patient blue eyes did not leave hers. Emily fought the uncomfortable feeling of being put on the spot. She bit her lip and her eyes drifted up to gain the mental strength she needed before she surrendered the words.

"I guess I don't remember because I don't want to." She finally whispered.

JJ didn't say a word and Emily craved an interruption so she wouldn't have to continue, but it was quite evident that the woman across from her would not provide it. JJ had already known the truth; it was a matter of her actually admitting it.

Emily drew in small breath to help her continue. "I need control of something and the dreams don't allow it so when I'm awake I don't want to be reminded."

"So how do you plan to move on if you don't face the nightmares?"

Emily could only shrug because she didn't have an answer, not one that would make sense anyway.

JJ's lips pierced and her eyes narrowed in thought, and once again waited.

Emily forced herself to maintain her composure as the words came out. "I've spent years dealing with my nightmares and I'm tired of having to do it anymore."

"Denial isn't going to resolve anything Emily."

"I'm not in denial. I'm very aware that I've cheated death more times than I think is allowed. I don't want to dwell JayJe I want to live, and not let the darkness swallow me."

JJ slowly nodded her understanding. The admittance caught itself in Emily's throat and she held the conversation at a standstill. The two women's silent contemplation was broken by JJ's phone as it buzzed in her purse. The resistance to answer battled in her, but they both knew that was not a possibility. She relented and pulled it out and immediately released an irritated sigh as she read the text.

"A case?"

"Yeah, but Em-"

"No, its fine." Emily sighed and leaned back. She couldn't deny that she more than welcomed the call.

JJ's irritation instantly turned to Emily. "Don't get too excited."

"I'm sorry?" Emily asked in confusion.

JJ made no effort to hold back her frustration. "You just seem a little too content that we're leaving things unresolved."

"I don't understand. What did you expect to be resolved?"

JJ's eyes dropped again and her anger dissipated as quickly as it had been there. She remained quiet and the empty cup suddenly held her interest and she spun it slowly in her hand. Emily had hoped that what she had already said was enough to stop the pain JJ was feeling, but clearly had not touched the blonde's own inner turmoil. As much as JJ said she didn't want the conversation to be about her pain, Emily knew what tortured her. They both still needed to deal with what happened.

"JayJe listen to me." She paused to make sure their eyes were locked. "I don't blame you now, and I won't all of a sudden have some crazy revelation and blame you in the future."

JJ let out an uneasy sigh and looked at the cup again. "Do I sound that ridiculous?"

"A little bit, yeah."

JJ looked up in shock but relaxed when she saw Emily's smile.

Emily reached across the table and drew her hand into her as she continued, "look, if your concern is for me and being able to move on, all I need to know is that you're going to be okay and can move on."

"Yeah?" JJ's blue eyes shown with a new hope.

"Yeah." Emily reinforced.

"Well, at least we both want the same thing."

Emily agreed and gave her a small smile.

JJ looked at her watch and shook her head.

"Can I take you home?" She asked as she scooted out of the booth and slung her purse over her shoulder.

Emily smiled up to the blonde and faintly shook her head. "No, I think I'm going to walk some more. I'll wonder home eventually."

"Okay." As she stood over the brunette she hesitated an unsure expression lingered on her face. "I'll call you when we get back."

Emily nodded. "Be safe."

JJ smiled and spun slowly to leave. Emily kept her own expression neutral and offered a small grin when the blonde looked back once more before she crossed through the doorway. She fought the urge to immediately escape the suffocating air that pressed down on her. She wanted to make sure that JJ was gone before she allowed any of the emotions to take her.

As she emerged into the bright morning she drew in the crisp fresh air, and winced slightly as the cold bit at her lungs. After taking a moment for her eyes to adjust to the new light she began to move towards the street again and head home. She hadn't wandered too far, and if she could she would have run a full sprint away from the diner, her thoughts and the recent conversation.

All she wanted was for everyone to be okay and she believed then she would be, but the look on JJ's face told her that she was lying to herself. Her piercing eyes that listened to her words saw straight through her. No matter how reassuring Emily attempted to be it was clear that only a crack had been put in the wall. She couldn't understand why it was so important to open up and let the pain seep out, it was easier to just tuck it away. Even in therapy she couldn't help but skate along the surface of truth and lies. Time would eventually heal she knew, but it was moving at an excruciatingly slow rate. All she really needed was for everything to be back to the way that it was before the nightmare began in the woods all those months ago.

Emily mulled over how to get herself back to an even plain and had not managed a block before the familiar car was pacing beside her. Emily stopped and turned to acknowledge the tail and the vehicle promptly halted with her.

The window dropped and a soft voice floated out. "I'm sorry Emily."

Emily leaned down to see JJ's eyes. "Sorry for what?"

"Please get in."

Emily sighed and complied with the simple request. She carefully moved into the seat but kept her head facing out the front window. "I'm not really sure what else you want me to say or do."

"I'm not really sure either."

"Okay?" Emily asked in confusion.

"I just-" JJ swallowed and looked out the window, and then she slowly turned her head back to make eye contact again. "I know for you to even open is a lot, but something is missing. I don't know what but I still have a nagging pit in my stomach. I know that you're right, but all the things that could have been done differently are so fresh in my mind."

"You're not the only one that is plagued by that. I constantly wonder how different my life would be if I didn't make the choices I had."

"But?"

Emily shrugged with her response. "There's no but. We can only do what we think is right and the rest just is."

"Do you really believe that?"

"I have to, otherwise how could we ever do this job and keep from going under. At some point you accept that it's who we are and let it be."

"I get it." JJ said and nodded.

"I told you I'm here to listen to anything no matter how ridiculous it seems."

"Thank you. And maybe one day you'll let me listen."

Emily slightly shook her head and smiled. "Maybe."

"Right," JJ could only laugh at the expected answer, "at least let me take you home now."

"Sure, since I'm already in the car."

JJ rolled her eyes but smiled to herself as she put the car in gear and slowly eased back onto the road.

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><p><em>Wow only two more chapters! A fun moment with Morgan and Prentiss and then round it all out with an exciting epilogue! Thank you as always for reading!<em>

_I'd love to hear your thoughts! The little lonely review button just right there could use some love today!_


	21. Chapter 21

_IMPORTANT NOTE! If you have read this chapter I'm sorry for reposting. The chapter itself has not changed, but I wanted to note that this is the last chapter. I had promised an epilogue but have a major case of writers block, so I am now marking it as complete. A continual thank you for reading, reviewing and adding this story to favorites! Hope you enjoyed the story!_

_Happy reading!_

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><p>Emily breathed out to fight the ache in her lungs. She would not cease the constant cycle of motion despite the burn and steadily pushed forward. Her shoes pounded across the ground in time to the fast paced music that blared in her ears. Her determined mind was clear of all thoughts except one, and that was to run. She brought her left arm up to take a glance to her running watch and felt a wave of disappointment that her pace had slowed. She welcomed the new burn in her legs as she increased her foot turn over to make up for the time and distance lost by slowing down.<p>

The moment her physical therapist had mentioned she could try running she had made a point to get up early everyday. Emily was determined to push her limits until she passed them. She needed it to help keep her head clear and give her the feeling she was making progress. With the continual flux of new goals the weeks passed faster and the light at the end of the tunnel became more of a tangible objective.

Emily tried to ignore the tightening that began to grip her lungs and she made one last push to get her legs to move faster. No matter how trained she was to recover her breath the lingering effects of the smoke inhalation made themselves known. It was not long before she could not avoid the lack of oxygen she was bringing in. Emily was forced to slow to a fast walk and ran a hand over her head in frustration and defeat. With each painful breath she slowly gained control and the pounding in her chest slowly retreated.

The doctor had warned her that she might continue to have some issues for up to a year. She thought she could decrease that time by forcing her lungs to work harder and conquer the remaining obstacle, but it was proving to be quite the challenge.

As she turned the block that led to her apartment she tucked a few stray strands of hair behind her ear in an attempt to keep the faint breeze from swirling them into her face. The music had become an annoyance and she paused her iPod before she pulled the ear buds out and let them dangle from her shirt. She slowed her pace when she caught sight of a familiar form standing with his back to her and a phone pressed against his ear.

She shook her head but had gotten used to the unannounced visits. When she first got home her first instinct was to fight them as she felt the need to heal to a point she didn't feel helpless, but everyone made it clear from the beginning they were not about to let her deal with her recovery alone. Each one of them gave a degree of support that in their own way helped her more than she would ever be able to express. The journey was far from over but knowing they were there made every step that much easier, and she appreciated that she still had them in her life.

When she was a few feet away she made her presence known, "Morgan?"

He spun quickly at her voice and brought his phone down ending the call.

"What are you doing here so early?" She asked.

"I didn't want you changing your mind and sneaking off without me."

"You could've called." She commented as she moved around him to enter the building.

"That's what I was doing, actually." He said as he followed her lead into the building's lobby.

She paused and squinted at him in curiosity and then pulled her phone from a small pocket in the back of her running pants. She saw the four missed calls and looked back to Derek, "Sorry, guess I was concentrating, I didn't notice my phone."

"Well you can't let that happen anymore."

"I'm sorry?"

He smiled at her defensive tone. "Now that you are starting back today, you can't ignore our calls anymore."

"Oh right, funny." She whispered and forced a smile then turned abruptly to climb the stairs to her apartment.

She kept a few paces ahead of Derek but after unlocking the door she held it open to allow him access inside. As she moved down the hall she pointed to her kitchen.

"Make some coffee for yourself, I'm going to get in the shower and get ready."

"Sounds good." He said as he turned away from her to enter the kitchen.

She watched him disappear then quickly slipped into her room and shut the door. Her hand lingered on the wood briefly before she snapped herself out of her daze and moved into the bathroom to start the shower. The small room began to steam slightly as the water warmed up and she stared at herself in the fogging mirror. To her surprise the dark circles that had surrounded her eyes for so long had actually reduced. She had accepted then to just always be there. The small scar on her neck had faded some but like all of her scars held strong reminders that life was a fragile thing. She ran her finger across the raised surface and wanted to continue to cling to the fact she had survived and hoped in the end it had made her stronger.

Emily pushed herself off the counter to turn away from her reflection and climbed into the shower. She stood for a moment and let the hot water pound onto her back then leaned her head back into the downpour and closed her eyes. She tried to allow herself to relax, but it remained an impossible feat, and wondered if it was something she could ever do. She reminded herself that she was going back to work, and couldn't think of a better reason to let the small things go.

Her continual doubt and insecurities repeatedly resurfaced no matter how hard she pushed them down. She could allow herself to be weak for a moment but knew the second the shower was turned off she had to regain her strength. Emily quickly washed away the salt and grim from the unsuccessful run and let the lingering doubts drain with the water.

When she finally emerged and entered the kitchen Derek was at the sink washing out his cup. He set it out to dry and he turned his head when he caught sight of her.

"You ready?" she asked.

He wiped his hand on the dishtowel and smiled to her, "Yup, are you?"

"More than you know." She responded under her breath as she grabbed her bag and keys.

* * *

><p>Emily set her pen down and closed the file in front of her with a sigh. She had paused from the menial task to refocus but was pulled from her own thoughts when she felt the weight of a hand run across the top edge of her chair. She tilted her head back to acknowledge the visitor and smiled up to Morgan who had stopped himself between her and Spencer's desk.<p>

"Prentiss, " he smiled down to her, "everything okay?"

She nodded not realizing her frustrated sigh was louder than she intended to be.

"Of course." She answered and followed his movements as he reached down to Spencer's desk and grabbed a pen.

He spoke and scribbled in the file he held, "you know Prentiss it's nice to walk in here and see you at your desk."

"I'm sure it will pass." She said with a chuckle.

"Ouch. Give me a break huh?"

"Never going to happen, " she teased and shuffled the paper work in front of her into a another file. "I give it another week before you're eating your words. Especially when I'm going out on the cases."

"I highly doubt that. How much longer you think?"

She just shrugged and continued to organize her desk. "Who knows, three more weeks maybe, it's up to the doctor and physical therapist."

Derek nodded his understanding and was about to speak when her desk phone rang and she apologized as she lifted the receiver to answer. She barely spoke more than two words and as she hung up she pushed her chair back to stand.

"Hotch?" Derek asked.

"Yep." She answered and grabbed the files from her desk and moved around it to climb the few stairs that led to Hotch's office. When she reached the door she knocked gently to announce her presence.

Aaron looked up from his own paperwork and smiled to the agent. "Prentiss, come in."

"Sir," She acknowledged him back and with long strides closed the gap to his desk and extended the file over for him to grab. "I just finished the last ones."

"Thanks." He said and set them to the side, then looked back to her in a curious silence.

"You wanted to speak to me," she encouraged and tilted her head in confusion to his expression.

When he didn't answer right away she adjusted her stance to steady herself. "Is there something wrong?"

"No, of course not." He answered then gestured his hand towards the chairs that sat in front of his desk. "Would you mind having a seat?"

She obliged and moved around to it and hesitantly sat. Her eyes never left his and tried to anticipate what he was going to say. She knew since she was back she was being closely watched by everyone, whether they would admit it or not. There had been two cases and she helped the best she could with Garcia but she felt so disconnected, and tried not to feel useless. She attempted to cover her insecurities with diligence, but she knew she could only fool everyone for so long, and without a case she felt even less productive.

"I wanted to check in and see how things are going." He started.

"Good." She half lied and tried to sit up straighter, but every muscle in her back was tense and was already as rigid as it would get.

"Okay," Aaron said with slight disbelief, but quickly moved on, "I received your final Psych evaluation today."

"And?"

"This doesn't mean anything to me." He said and slid the file to the side of the desk.

He then clasped his hands together and spoke softly, "I think I know you a little better than to take into account anything you said to a therapist. Especially since you know how to talk circles around them."

"Has my performance been lacking?" She asked with a hint of suspicion, but in the back of her mind was expecting it to be blatantly obvious.

Before he could answer she continued quickly and added some sarcasm to mask her insecurities, "I think I'm following orders like a good patient."

Aaron shook his head at her underlying tone. "I understand that it's hard to be held back when you want to just jump right back into what you're used to. You just can't be out in the field, and there is a reason the doctor has not cleared you."

"I get that. I just feel more than ready, and it's not just because I want to, I know I'd be cleared. Not being able to get an appointment with my Orthopedist that isn't over a month away is frustrating. I even have Garcia on it."

"You know you don't have to be out there to be an asset to the team. You have nothing to prove here."

"I know that."

Aaron leaned back and arched his brow as he stared dead into her eyes. "Do you really?"

"I do." She said bluntly and returned his stare, but there was a truth and revelation to hear and to say the words out loud.

"Just take the time to fully heal, okay?" Aaron pressed in an almost pleading tone.

"Not that I have a choice." She huffed and looked away for the first time.

"That's true, so why don't you take the rest of the day off?"

Emily suddenly felt herself get defensive again and shot back. "Sir, the last thing I need is time off."

Aaron threw is hand up to calm the fiery agent. "I know that. I'm not giving you any special privilege here. It's been a long week and I'm going to let everyone go home early too."

"Oh, well then, okay." She smiled letting the irritation vanish and rose from the chair.

Aaron spoke up suddenly before she reached the door, "Prentiss, if I haven't said it, its good to have you back."

Emily tapped her hand on the frame of the doorway and smiled widely back to him, "you can say that to me when that doctor's note is on your desk."

He returned the smile but shook his head at the expected retort.

Emily left the office with a new focus, and welcomed it. She didn't hesitate to pull her coat from her chair and wrap it around herself.

Derek looked up from the file he was reading. "Where are you headed?"

"Hotch is letting us off."

"Really?" Reid's voice cracked in excitement.

"Really," she answered with a wink.

"We should all get some food," JJ suggested as she joined the circle of agents.

"Yeah," Derek agreed and looked over to the brunette. "You in?"

She smiled but shook her head, "no thanks. I think I'm going to hit the range before I go home."

They all remained silent at first slightly disappointed in her decision, but had grown accustom to her preference for training and accepted that it was something she needed to do.

"See you Monday then." JJ said as she watched Emily sling her bag around her shoulder.

"Yep, have fun guys." Emily replied as she moved away from the group.

* * *

><p>Derek approached Emily and smiled at the serious look of concentration she had as she released the bullets from the chamber and hit her desired target. He had seen her throughout the time she was off and almost everyday of the three weeks she had actually been back, but he really he had not fully taken her in. He was just appreciative that she was there. There was nothing spectacular about her outfit, she wore jeans and a fitted light blue tee shirt, but what he noticed the most was how physically fit she was.<p>

When her magazine was empty she released it and dropped her arm to set her Glock down to reload. She caught sight of Derek as he approached and acknowledged him with a look that was clear that she knew he would end up there.

He nodded to her and brought his bag he had over his shoulder down to his side. "Damn Prentiss you were serious when you said you've been taking the strengthening serious!"

"Why would I lie about something like that?" She replied without looking up from pushing the new bullets into place.

Derek shrugged but didn't take his eyes from Emily's defined arm muscles. She caught his stares and laughed.

She then playfully bent her arm and flexed her bicep. "Come on Princess take a feel."

Derek smiled and dropped his head at her taunt, but she continued to tease, "don't be scared I know you want to!"

"You're really something else you know that Prentiss."

She let out another laugh and relaxed her arm before she turned to finish reloading.

"You scared now?"

Morgan took a step back in disbelief. "Of what?"

"Oh, I don't know, me maybe?" Emily asked with a raised brow and slightly tilting her head to face him.

"Please, you wish."

Emily set the magazine down and finally turned herself to face the dark agent. "That's all you have for a comeback?"

He mimicked her stance and tried unsuccessfully to hold a straight face. "You sure are feisty today. Why don't we put your money where your mouth is."

"Name it." She smirked and crossed her arms.

"A friendly game of poker." He replied and smoothly and pulled a deck of cards from his duffle bag.

Emily grinned at him but didn't back down, "you're on. What do I get when I win?"

"Wow you sure are cocky. How about dinner for best hand?"

"Sure, but I'm not sure you can afford L'Auberge Chez Francois."

"What?" He asked in confusion at her perfect French accent.

"Exactly." She chuckled and returned her focus to her task on the table.

Morgan disregarded the last statement and picked up the staple gun he brought and walked down range to attach the cards to the five targets. When he finished he raised his arms to show his accomplishment behind him.

"Seven shots, the best five cards win." He called out as he rejoined Emily.

"Sounds good."

After loading their weapons both agents placed their earplugs in and set up side by side at the ready. Morgan put his fingers up to direct the count. When he threw his hand down on the third count they both drew and in a rapid succession the shots echoed around them. When the final shot was taken, and the lingering sound wave dissipated, the two holstered their guns and moved to see who had the best hand.

They walked down in quiet anticipation, and both agents quickly found their cards. They knew which were theirs by the size of hole put into the thin paper.

Derek called out to Emily as he pulled his last card down, "so what do you have?"

She only shrugged and turned away from him and swiftly headed back to the table.

Derek trotted to catch up to her. "Its okay that you didn't get anything. You don't have to worry I'm not a big fine dining guy anyway."

He didn't hesitate to set down his three of a kind.

"Impressive hand." She commented then one by one set down her five cards.

Derek's eyes grew wide when she strategically set the last one down. "Damn girl, how did you get a flush?"

She leaned back and tilted her head in surprise. "I think you forget I'm the only person to have ever beaten our Vegas born genius."

"Yeah but," he stuttered and looked down range again but decided not to argue.

Emily held her smile and began to pull all the cards into a small pile. Derek suddenly grew quiet and just stared at the brunette.

She felt his stare and set the cards down the smile quickly fading from her face. "I knew there was another reason you came here."

"What does that mean?" He accused.

"You tell me." She quickly countered.

He paused then gave voice to his concern. "Do you think maybe you're pushing yourself too hard? Too soon?"

Emily leaned against the table as if to hold her up from his words. "Too hard and too soon, really? Where have you been the last four months?"

"I mean the strengthening," he spoke calmly and pointed to the space around them, "coming here every chance you get, and I saw your name on the list for the next four tactical training classes."

"I don't see a problem." Emily said and pushed herself back up and tried to keep an even tone to not show her irritation to his questioning. "The only thing I can control right now is to focus on healing and getting stronger so I can come back to the one thing that make any sense to me."

Derek shook his head at her as if not completely satisfied with her explanation. "I guess I just worry that you may be overdoing it."

"This coming from a man that does 1000 sit ups a couple times a day."

"Come on Prentiss you know I just want to make sure you're okay. I don't want you to think you have to over prepare to come back."

Emily threw her hands up in frustration. "Is that even possible in what we do? We never know what we will walk into. That's the reason we prepare."

Derek remained quiet but shrugged his response, he knew she was right. She did appreciate the concern, and she had to get used to it not fleeting as fast as she would like. Morgan's questioning her made it clear that it would resurface again when she would actually be back one hundred percent.

She calmed herself and tried to reassure her partner. "Look Morgan you can be worried if I'm isolating myself and not working to come back. I would actually see this as a good thing."

"Okay, I guess it's just hard to tell if you are really in a good head space."

"Yeah?" She asked and replaced her earplug. She turned back to the targets down the range. Derek quickly followed suit, but slightly confused to what she was doing.

She unholstered her gun and rose to take aim at the target. He watched in curiosity as she hit the target one expert shot at a time. The first couple created two holes towards the top right next to each other, and then she continued to add five more in a low arch. When she finished she lowered her gun and and kept her head forward but held a smug look. He let out a laugh as he took in the happy face she created on the head of the silhouette.

He lowered his head as he continued to laugh and had to take in a few breaths to regain himself before he managed to look over to her. When he lifted his head he was met by her dark eyes and beaming smile, and they held the bright light that had been missing for so long.

"Good enough?" She asked.

"More than good enough."

_"Move on. It's just a chapter in the past, but don't close the book. Just turn the page." Author unknown_

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><p><em>Hope you enjoyed the chapter and story! <em>

_I'd love to hear what you think of the story! Review button and I will wait patiently! The button may be more patient than me though. ;)_


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